REYNOLDSBURG, Ohio — A woman and her 7-year-old son were killed in a house fire in Reynoldsburg early Tuesday morning.
The fire started around 3:40 a.m. at a duplex in the 7000 block of Anne Court, according to Chief Jeff Sharps with the Truro Township Fire Department.
Truro Township, as well as Violet Township and Jefferson Township fire departments all responded to the scene. According to Sharps, crews had trouble getting to the second floor of the home.
Sharps said a 10-year-old and 13-year-old were also in the house at the time of the fire but managed to escape through an upstairs window. From there, Sharps said the two continued down the garage roof, where a neighbor reportedly helped them down.
The mother and son were unable to escape and were found upstairs near a closet. They were pronounced dead at the scene.
Reynoldsburg police identified the victims as 31-year-old Yoko Scott and 7-year-old Truly Harris.
According to an update from Truro Township Fire, the two children who escaped are now in the custody of a family member.
“When they said someone was in there, I was like there's no chance,” said neighbor Raheen Hilliard.
Ann Issacs of Reynoldsburg said she didn’t know the family but came anyway after hearing about it on the news. She knelt in the front yard and prayed.
“This time of year, it's so sad for a mother to lose her child. Thank god they are together in heaven and at peace, I just had to come out,” she said.
The other side of the duplex had nearly no damage, authorities said.
The Ohio State Fire Marshal is investigating the cause of the fire.