Friday, January 31, 2025 - Six family members, including three children, have died after a fast-moving fire swept through a home in northern New York.
It was gathered that high winds fueled the fire that struck
a single-family home at around 10 p.m. on Monday in Massena, a town near the
St. Lawrence River and the northern border with Canada.
State and county fire officials were investigating the cause
of the fire and said they believe it started in the kitchen.
A family member identified the victims as Diana Avery,
Thomas Bowen, Tiara Bowen, Joshua Bowen, 14, Eli Bowen, 9, and Karmen Bowen, 6.
The relative, Joseph Bowen, said Avery owned the house and was his mother and
Thomas Bowen was his brother.
“My brother was a jack-of-all-trades and his wife was the
keeper of the children,” Joseph Bowen said in a phone interview Thursday. “They
loved camping. They loved to go to the beach and they loved playing in water.”
The family in a statement thanked community members,
including emergency responders and the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe, for their
support.
“Although our hearts are saddened and mourn for the loss of
our family members, it is uplifting to hear how our family has touched and
uplifted this community,” the family said in a statement provided to local news
outlets.
“Like this tragedy, words cannot express how this affects
the community they had and the coming together of the community.”
Massena Central School District Superintendent Ronald Burke said in a message to the school community that “our hearts are broken at the loss of the three Bowen children,” who he said attended the junior high and elementary schools.
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