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Family, community mourning deaths of two young girls after house fire

By Annie Scholz

CREATED Nov. 8, 2012 - UPDATED: Nov. 8, 2012

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  • Annie Scholz reports Video by tmj4.com

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  • RACINE - Two girls have died and two boys are in what Racine's fire chief call "extremely poor" condition after being trapped in a house fire overnight.

  • The girls: Dayja Scott, 9, and Dalija Scott, 8, died in the fire. Four firefighters were also receiving treatment for exhaustion.

  • The fire happened at about 12:45 a.m. Thursday morning in a home on the 1900 block of Linden Avenue.

  • Photo of the four Scott children

  • According to Fire Chief Steve Hansen, dispatchers heard children screaming when the mother made the initial phone call.

  • "(She) had left the residence after trying to rescue her trapped children," said Hansen in a Thursday morning news conference.

  • Hansen said in a statement that firefighters were able to get one child out immediately, but it took about another 12 minutes to get two other children out, and another five minutes to get the fourth child out.

  • Firefighters were on the scene just before 1 a.m.

  • Racine Fire Capt. Brett Haller said officials believe the fire started in a bathroom off a hallway, between the children's bedroom and an unoccupied bedroom.

RACINE- Four young children couldn't escape their Racine home and two of them died.  That family and neighbors are struggling with the tragedy.

A grieving community came together to remember Dayja and Dalija Scott.  The girls died when a fire ripped through their Linden Avenue home early Thursday morning.  Their aunt, Beverly Austin, got the call soon after.

"I jumped out of the bed and I said 'oh my God, this couldn't be happening,'" says Austin.

The fire started in a bathroom.  Police officers pushed through heavy smoke to pull a man from the house.  Firefighters were able to save the girls' two brothers, Michael and Luther.

"All four of them were always together," says Austin.

While kids in the neighborhood honor their friends, neighbors want to offer any help they can.

"They're just my kids too, we as a community raise each other's children and we come together and look out for one another," says Elaine Ivy.

Something the family is grateful for, as they try to find a way to move forward.

"We need to continue to love one another and support one another because that's what God is all about, is love," says Austin.

The home had no power when the fire started.  We Energies won't comment on why, leaving many to wonder just what went wrong.  Police say the investigation is ongoing.