Fierce fire kills 10 from 1 apartment

Recently, three fires were set in the same building.
COLUMBUS (AP) -- A fire police believe was purposely set at an apartment building burned so fiercely it blocked residents trying to escape the building and forced some to jump out of windows. Ten people, many related, died.
By the end Sunday, all that remained of the 24-unit apartment building in suburban Columbus was a wooden skeleton exposed above melted siding. At least 53 people were left homeless.
Antonio Noriega, who came from Mexico in search of a better life, struggled to make sense of a tragedy that took the lives of his eight relatives and two family friends. "My family is dead," he said.
Slightly injured
Two people, including a woman who jumped from a window, were treated and released from a hospital, a nursing supervisor said. Authorities wouldn't say Sunday afternoon whether others were missing.
Prairie Township Fire Chief Steve Feustel said it was suspicious that the fire burned so fiercely in a stairway, which in modern buildings are designed not to burn. The flames there blocked people from escaping.
In addition, a hydrant had been knocked over, which delayed getting water to fight the fire, which was already shooting through the roof when rescue crews arrived, Feustel said.
Tried to save them
Noriega said he tried to save the victims -- reaching for a ladder to climb and help his brother and others trapped on the third floor, but firefighters pulled him away.
"My family, they're sleeping and the fire is coming fast," said Noriega, who had jumped out the window of his first-floor apartment. "I can't help my brothers."
Ismael Noriega, 36, his wife, Lidia Mejia, 22, and their three young sons died in the fire, according to Antonio Noriega, Ismael's brother. Mejia's two brothers, her nephew and two friends also were killed, Noriega said.
The victims lived in the same apartment on the third floor, which was destroyed in the early morning fire, said Feustel. "They were out of their beds. They didn't die in their sleep," he said.
Ismael Noriega moved to Columbus four years ago to join two brothers, three sisters and several nieces and nephews. He worked for a landscaping company, sometimes up to 70 hours a week, Antonio Noriega said.
The family had hoped to return one day to its hometown of Leon in the state of Guanajuato in central Mexico, said Martin Noriega, Ismael's nephew.
Cause not known
Feustel said the fire started about 2:30 a.m. in the basement or the first floor, but the cause was not known. There were no suspects and no known witnesses. The fire came about six weeks after three fires were set in the same building in an empty apartment and hallway, Feustel said.
Pascasie Mulanigulwa, who lives next door, was awakened by the light through her bedroom window.
"I saw people jumping down out of the third floor," she said "It was terrible."