Radio traffic from Montgomery County, Maryland fire where triplets were rescued

Fire Investigators believe that the homeowner, Michael Petrucelli, had been working in an upstairs office while his triplets, three 2 year-old sons, Aiden, Bricen and Coleson were sleeping in an adjacent bedroom. A nanny who worked for the family and cared for the children had put the three boys to bed for a nap at about 12:30 PM. All three boys were in a second floor nursery room sleeping. All three children were in cribs that were covered with a product called a “Cozy Crib Tent” that is distributed by the Tots in Mind Company of Salem New Hampshire. This as a type of netting is affixed to the top of the crib to prevent children from falling or climbing from the confines of their cribs.

Around 1:25 PM, a resident of the house called 911 to report a hot tub on fire with extension to the rear of the house. It is believed that another adult occupant, a caretaker (nanny), had exited the house to visit with a family member when she noticed smoke and fire outside and in the rear of the house. She immediately entered the house to alert other occupants. She went to the front door and called up the stairs to Mr. Petrucelli and said that there was a fire outside. Mr. Petrucelli then left his office, went downstairs and into the back yard. At this point he saw a fire involving his hot tub that was located immediately adjacent to the home.

Upon discovering the fire in the rear of the house the father called 911 and initially used a nearby garden hose in an attempt to extinguish the fire. He instructed the nanny to go upstairs and get the boys out of the house and put them in the front yard. She apparently was not able comply. After his brief attempt to extinguish the fire and his call to 911 and finding that his children were still inside the house Mr. Petrucelli attempted to re-enter the house to assist his three children who were sleeping upstairs. Due to the extreme heat and thickening smoke, he was unable to retrieve them.

He is heard on the tape telling the nanny to get the boys out of the house. He tells the fire dispatcher that the fire is at the back of the house and involves a hot tub. He continues to say “I’m trying to spray it with a hose. It’s got my house. I’ve got three small children inside”. The dispatcher advises him to get them out and stay out of the house.

The emergency call sending fire and rescue units is dispatched as a house fire at 1:26 PM. “To the rear, hot tub on fire”. Another computer message is delivered to responding units at 1:27 PM that states “Everyone is getting out”.

At approximately 1:31 PM, the first arriving engine (711) from the nearby Glen Echo Fire Station #11 arrives. While enroute and approaching the scene still several blocks away, neighbors pointed then in the direction of the fire. Moments later firefighters arrived on the scene and were made aware of the three boy’s location in an upstairs bedroom.

Engine 711, commanded by Captain Kimonti Ogelsby, arrives on the scene and reports heavy black smoke coming from side C of the structure and provides lay-out instructions. As Captain Ogelsby exits his vehicle Mr. Petrucelli tells him that his three babies are still upstairs in their cribs. Captain Oglesby makes the decision to enter the structure without the protection of a hoseline in an effort to assist the children. Via radio he informs the Emergency Communications Center and other responding units of this fact and enters the structure with another Firefighter from Engine 711. They entered the structure through the front door, about five feet inside they encountered high heat conditions, thick smoke and zero visibility. Captain Ogelsby told the other firefighter to ventilate and open as many windows as he could while Captain Ogelsby continued to search.

Eventually, Captain Ogelsby found the stairs. As he ascended the stairs he felt the heat intensify. He found a window in the stairway landing and breached it with his elbow, at which time he could then see the bottom of the bedroom door where he believed the kids were sleeping and the door was closed. Captain Oglesby looked back down the stairs and could see fire in the living room begin to threaten the stairway. He believed at this point that he could not bring any victims down the stairs and went back down the stairs, gained control of a hoseline that had been retrieved by another firefighter and began to extinguish the fire in the living room so others may get in and get out.

While others were suppressing the fire, two members of Bethesda Chevy Chase Rescue Squad 741, Firefighters John Klavon and Lieutenant Curtis Warfield, entered the house and went up the stairs through heat and smoke to search for the children. Moments later Lieutenant Warfield and Firefighter Klavon located the children still in their cribs in a second floor bedroom. It should be noted that apparently there was a bit of a struggle in the removal of the children from their cribs because of the aforementioned crib netting that the firefighters encountered. Under the heat and smoke conditions the firefighters indicated that it was very difficult to operate the zippers on the netting to remove the children. The rescuers called for the assistance of ladders and a hose line at about 1:37 PM. Moments later they retrieved two of the three victims and descended the stairs to the outside.

Other fire and rescue crews were arriving on the scene securing water supply, ventilation, escape ladders and suppression activities, including the Rescue Squad 741, from Bethesda Chevy Chase and units from Engine 720 and 706, from Bethesda Fire Stations #20 and #6; Engine 750, from National Naval Medical Center Fire; Engine 707 from Chevy Chase Fire Station #7 and A
erial Tower 751, from the National Institutes of Health, to name a few.

While Lieutenant Warfield and Firefighter Klavon were on the second floor others were entering the structure, including crews from Engine 706 and Engine 750. Seeing only two of the three victims being removed, Firefighter Jody Sealey from Engine 750 and Captain Oglesby then went back up the stairs where they located the third child and quickly removed him from the house to waiting medical attention.

Concurrent to the rescue efforts the crew of Engine 706 were making an aggressive fire attack on the first floor using their 2 inch line with a smooth bore nozzle and the 1 ¾ inch line that had been put down by Captain Oglesby when he went upstairs to assist with a rescue.

Crews of firefighters and rescuers reached the three children in their upstairs bedroom within minutes. All were found in their cribs. Rescuers exited the house with the children in hand to awaiting medical workers outside. All three, two and half year old boys (triplets) were transported to Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, D.C. in critical condition. Two firefighters were injured, with relatively minor burns, received during the rescue attempt. They were transported to the MedStar Burn Unit at the Washington Hospital Center, in Washington, D.C. The father was also injured in his attempt to rescue his children. He was transported in serious condition to the MedStar Burn Unit, as well

Fire and Explosive Investigators from the Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service believe the fire was accidental. The fire occurred in a two story colonial style home of brick masonry exterior construction with wood framing and drywall sheathed interior walls. The fire appears to have originated near the hot tub in the rear of the house. The cause of the fire is electrical in nature and more than likely was due to a failure of electrical components associated with the hot tub. Nearby combustibles overheated and caught on fire. The fire extended from the exterior to inside the house via several windows, as well as an attached wood frame porch. It is believed the fire smoldered and burned undetected for an extended period before being detected by the Nanny.