House fire kills one, injures two in S.W. Phila.

The fire on the 1200 block of South 46th Street occurred in a home with no smoke detectors, officials said.
The fire on the 1200 block of South 46th Street occurred in a home with no smoke detectors, officials said.
The fire on the 1200 block of South 46th Street occurred in a home with no smoke detectors, officials said.GALLERY: The fire on the 1200 block of South 46th Street…
By Karie Simmons and Sulaiman Abdur-Rahman, Inquirer Staff Writers
Posted: February 27, 2013

A man died and two others were injured in a Southwest Philadelphia house fire late Sunday, officials said.

The 11:30 blaze erupted in a property on the 1200 block of South 46th Street. Firefighters on Monday did not release the identity of the deceased.

A neighbor, Lola Smith, 63, said she fell asleep Sunday night with the TV on and awoke about midnight to three loud knocks on her front door. A police officer and a neighbor told her there was a fire next door and rushed her and her brother, who has special needs and was upstairs, outside and onto the street, she said.

"It was so scary," Smith added. She said she did not know the deceased or injured neighbors.

Firefighters brought the fire under control at 11:59 p.m. Sunday. The cause of the fire was under investigation by the Fire Marshal's Office.

Fire Department Executive Chief Richard Davison said the two injured victims were taken to the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, one in critical condition and the other stable.

The house had no smoke alarms and sustained significant damage from the fire. The property was rendered uninhabitable.

The Southeast Pennsylvania Chapter of the American Red Cross on Monday was providing one of the injured men with food, clothing, and lodging. A spokesman, David Schrader, said the Red Cross would help the man find permanent housing.

Members of the American Red Cross visited the block to distribute fire safety information and other prevention materials. Firefighters canvassed the area, too, and installed smoke detectors in the homes nearest to the fire.

Contact Sulaiman Abdur-Rahman at sabdur-rahman@phillynews.com, or follow on Twitter @sabdurr.

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