Six Dead, Including Four Children, In Maryland House Fire

Six people, four of them children, were killed Sunday morning after a fire tore through a home in Waldorf, Maryland, according to the Maryland State Fire Marshal’s Office.

Fire crews were called around 8:40 a.m. to the 3000 block of Declaration Court North, where the house was already engulfed in flames. Responders from the Charles County Sheriff’s Office, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and local volunteer fire and EMS units assisted in search and recovery operations.

Two residents escaped unharmed, and another adult arrived while firefighters were on scene. Crews worked to bring the blaze under control before discovering the bodies of two other adults and four children inside the home.

Officials said there is no evidence of foul play. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

Firefighter Cancer Risk Spotlighted in New Study

The tragedy comes as new research highlights the health risks faced by firefighters. A study published last week in the International Journal of Epidemiology by the American Cancer Society found that firefighters face an increased risk of death from most cancers, particularly kidney and skin cancer.

According to the study, firefighters have a 40% higher mortality rate from kidney cancer and a 58% higher mortality rate from skin cancer compared to the general population.

Earlier this month, the Pikesville Volunteer Fire Company received a federal grant to host cancer screenings for firefighters. The department has lost several members to cancer in recent years.

Six Dead, Including Four Children, In Maryland House Fire  was originally published on wolbbaltimore.com