Wednesday, May 18, 2016
YOUNGSTOWN
Neil Autry’s first thoughts when he was roused by a loud noise late Tuesday night at his North Side home was about the safety of his two young grandchildren.
“I just heard something go ‘boom’ and I thought it was the kids running downstairs,” a subdued Autry said Wednesday morning as he watched state fire marshals and city firefighters sift through the debris of the 1524 Bryson St. home to find clues as to how the fire started.
“I went to put them back to bed,” he said, standing in front of his blackened home Wednesday morning recalling the horror of the previous night.
He never got the chance.
“I walked into a blaze of fire,” he said softly.
That fire at about 11:30 p.m. killed the two children, Quincy, 2 and Jimmia Moore, 8 months, and also his 24-year-old daughter, NaKema Autry.
The children were found by firefighters on the landing on the stairs between the first and second floor.
Dr. Joseph Ohr, forensic pathologist for the Mahoning County Coroner’s Office, said autopsies were done Wednesday and the cause of death appears to be smoke inhalation for all three victims.
The fire is the first fatal fire in the city this year.
Read more about the tragedy in Thursday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.