JEFFERSON, Ohio — Three people are dead, and three others are injured after a fire in Austinburg Township in Ashtabula County, according to a state fire marshal spokesperson.
Austinburg Fire Chief Bill Wilms said the first call reporting the fire on Jefferson-Eagleville Road came in around 7:30 am. Friday.
By the time firefighters arrived, the chief said there was little they could do but stay back and fight the flames.
"I mean we had fire coming out of every window and the eaves," said Wilms.
The fast-moving flames devoured an old barn, which had partially been turned into apartments, said Wilms.
The chief said three people inside when the fire started were able to make it out. He said they were treated for smoke inhalation.
But Wilms said a woman and two children who were trapped by the fire did not survive.
It took crews several hours to recover their bodies from the rubble.
"The whole building collapsed," said Wilms. "They were down basically inside the basement when we got there."
The Ashtabula County Coroner's Office had not released the victims' names as of Friday night.
Wilms believes the fire began in the area of the apartments and then spread to the rest of the barn.
State fire marshal's investigators will determine what caused the deadly fire.
A GoFundMe has been created to help with the devastating loss.
