5 dead, including baby, in rural Ohio house fire

PEDRO, Ohio (AP) — Fire swept through a 12-bedroom house in rural, southern Ohio early today, killing five people and injuring seven. One survivor said he jumped out a window to escape the flames, which left only a few studs and a small section of the home's side still in place.

Four women and an 8-month-old boy were killed, said Shane Cartmill, a spokesman for the Ohio fire marshal's office. The fire began in a central breezeway, but the exact cause remained under investigation, Cartmill said.

As he sifted through the ashes at midday, Kyle Whitmer, 20, said the home was owned by his mother, Kathy Whitmer, 52, and that they lived there with his girlfriend and her mother; his sister and her boyfriend; and friends who had fallen on hard times. The sister, Rachel Whitmer, was among the dead, Kyle Whitmer said.

The home sits in a valley in Lawrence County's Elizabeth Township, about 15 miles north of Ashland, Ky., near where the Ohio, Kentucky and West Virginia meet. The fire was Ohio's deadliest this year, the fire marshal's office said.