17-year-old girl and 15-year-old brother killed in Cortlandt Manor fire
CORTLANDT MANOR, Westchester County (WABC) -- A 17-year-old girl and her 15-year-old brother were killed in an early morning house fire in Westchester County.
The fire broke out around 2:30 a.m. Wednesday on Sherwood Road in Cortlandt Manor.
When firefighters arrived they found heavy flames throughout the two-story building. Everyone was home at the time of the fire except for the father who was at work.
An older son who slept downstairs was able to get his mother out of the house, but the teenagers, a 17-year-old and a 15-year-old, were upstairs.
"Our first arriving fire engine saw flames extending out of that first bay window behind me as well as the front door, the family's mother was outside, screaming that her kids are in the upper floor bedrooms," said Lake Mohegan Fire District Chief Thomas Eade.
The two teens were pulled from a second-floor bedroom by firefighters using ladders.
"I had two members in one bedroom, two members in the next bedroom, they worked their tails off to get these individuals out from the ground ladder, out of the window onto the floor where they're both found pulseless and not breathing," Eade said.
The mother was taken to the hospital in unknown condition.
The cause of the fire appears to be an overloaded extension cord or power strip, officials say.
Both teens are students at Putnam Valley High School.
Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins issued a statement and said the father of the victims is a correction officer.
"This loss hits especially close to home for the County family, as the father of the children involved is one of our own, Westchester County Correction Officer Gregory Toone," Jenkins said. "Our hearts are with Officer Toone, his family, loved ones and everyone grieving this unimaginable loss. We are also praying for the recovery of the surviving victims and for strength for the entire family in the difficult days ahead."
Jenkins said that the county stands united in supporting the family and the Cortlandt community.
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