Two young children died when their home exploded in the small Missouri town of Defiance — while they were home because their school had canceled classes due to cold weather.
Julian Keiser, 4, and Jamison Keiser, 6, died early Friday before they could escape or be rescued from their burning home near Highway 94 outside St. Louis, reports St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Their mother, Evelyn Turpiano, and grandparents, Jennifer Ham and Vern Ham, managed to escape and are safe, according to officials and the GoFundMe page.
“They were the sweetest little boys,” neighbor Sharon Oberlag told the outlet. “They are so cute and they think going to school is the coolest thing.”
She said Julian, who had just started kindergarten, and Jameson were home at the time of the explosion because their school canceled classes to keep its students safe from the cold.
Firefighters arrived just minutes after the police, but the house was already engulfed in flames and they couldn’t reach them in time.
Jamison Keiser, 6, and Julian Keiser, 4, were killed in a house explosion in Missouri on their way home from school because of the cold weather. Sincerely Sharon Oberlag
New Melle Fire Protection District Chief Dan Casey said the smoke eater got in through the window and looked for the boys.
“They couldn’t find him right away because of the fire,” Casey said, adding that the boy was later found dead.
Oberlag told KMOV that he heard a “boom, like an explosion” in the house.
“Everyone came of course to help and, God, we never realized the loss of those two little boys – it’s so sad what has happened,” he told the outlet.
The boy’s mother, Evelyn Turpiano, and grandparents, Jennifer Ham and Vern Ham, managed to escape the fire in the town of Defiance. KMOV
“They tried, Nick and Travis, the neighbors, they tried to get the boy and they couldn’t, it was just devastating,” Oberlag added.
The cause of the explosion and fire is still under investigation.
The building is owned by the Hoffmann Family Company — a Florida firm started by Missouri natives David and Jerri Hoffmann — that bought the local wineries and restaurants, promising to turn the region into the Napa Valley of the Midwest, the Post-Dispatch reported.
Firefighters were unable to reach the boy because of the raging flames. New Melle Fire Protection District
“Our hearts go out to our team members and their families who lost children and grandchildren,” the company said in a statement Friday. “As family owned, we are committed to our community and supporting our employees.”
The home is next door to Defiance RoadHouse, a bar and grill managed by the boy’s tragic mother, Turpiano, according to the outlet.
Jennifer Ham, Turpiano’s mother, has also managed the eatery for years, Dan Tripp, co-owner of Good News Brewing in Defiance, told the Post-Dispatch.
The cause of the explosion and fire is still under investigation.
Tripp set up a GoFundMe page for the family that has raised more than $145,000 as of Monday morning. He said both women are members of the Defiance Merchants Association, a nonprofit organization that supports the local wine industry.
“If you ever meet the boys at the Defiance Roadhouse, the Christmas Festival or the St. Patty’s Day parade, you will never forget their zest for life and the joy they bring to everyone around them,” the fundraiser said.
“Not only did the family have to pay for two funerals, they lost their home and all their possessions. In addition to your financial support, the family will need your prayers and emotional support as they grieve [loss] from two special little boys,” he said.
Neighbor Laura Emerson stopped by to hang her Christmas wreath on a water pump near the burning house and attached two stuffed animals to it.
“Those kids are sunshine. They’re bright. They’re so happy. They’re loved,” she told the Post-Dispatch.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
