Columbus Grove fire kills girl, 2, injures 2

Hailey Betts, 2; her sister, Hannah Betts, 9 months, and their grandmother, Mary Gander, 52, were rescued by Columbus Grove firefighters from the house at 402 East Sycamore St. They were taken to St. Rita's, where Hailey was pronounced dead.

The Lucas County Coroner's Office will perform an autopsy for the Allen County Coroner's Office.

Hannah and Mrs. Gander were transferred to St. Vincent Mercy Medical Center in Toledo. Both were in critical condition last night.

The fire was reported to a 911 dispatcher at 10:33 a.m. by Mrs. Gander's husband, Bob, who was calling from their house next door at 400 East Sycamore, Putnam County Sheriff James Beutler said in a statement.

A third grandchild, Dylon Golden, 4, escaped the fire and ran to his grandparents' house. Mrs. Gander was baby-sitting, as she does every day while daughter Terrie Betts and her husband, Eric, are at work.

Mr. Gander was on the couch when his grandson came through the back door.

"He said, 'Grandpa, Grandpa, my house is on fire,'•" Mr. Gander said last night. "So I pulled on my shoes lickety-split, grabbed my coat, and went out. The smoke was rolling out. I grabbed my cordless phone and called 911 and told them what was going on.

"I tried to get in," Mr. Gander said. "There was no way I could get in. The smoke was billowing too severely. By that time, the police and the fire department was here."

Mr. Gander told them that people were still inside.

Arriving firefighters saw smoke, but no flames, Keith Hartoon, assistant chief of the Columbus Grove Fire Department, said. The blaze was confined to the living room.

The cause of the fire is believed to be accidental, Sheriff Beutler said. The State Fire Marshal's Office is investigating, the sheriff said.

The house can be repaired, Chief Hartoon said. But calculating a damage estimate was not a priority yesterday. "You can bulldoze the house tomorrow, but you can't bring a life back," he said.

Mr. Gander was at St. Vincent much of the day with his wife and granddaughter, who he said were in medically induced comas.

His daughter and son-in-law planned to spend the night at the hospital. Dylon was with his father, Harold Golden.

"I'm trying to stay strong," Mr. Gander said, his voice breaking. "But it's not working."

Fire department members met last night to review the fire report and talk over the event - and to "just tell the guys, if you need some help, get some help, or we'll steer you in the right direction," Chief Hartoon said.

On Nov. 30, a mother and her three children died in their West Toledo home in a fire caused by an unattended candle. Funeral services are at noon today in Coldren-Crates Funeral Home, Findlay, for Michele Crawford, 29; Yaniela Crawford, 11; Victoria Crawford, 7, and Ivan Diaz, 4.

In 1986, Cynthia Collins, 2, died in a Columbus Grove apartment fire. Kenneth Richey, a U.S.-British citizen, is charged with setting the fire at the apartment complex where she lived.

In 1987, Richey was convicted of the crime and sentenced to death by a three-judge panel, but his conviction was overturned last summer by a federal appeals court.

He is being held in the Putnam County jail in lieu of a $10 million bond while he awaits his re-trial March 28 on aggravated murder and aggravated arson charges in Putnam County Common Pleas Court.

Contact Mark Zaborney at:
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