By Jim Woods, The Columbus Dispatch, Ohio
Nov. 3--One man was killed and three others were seriously burned when fire swept through a house near downtown Chillicothe tonight.
Chillicothe firefighters found the body of James S. Beverly, 37, in the house at 164 W. 4th St., said Officer Bud Lytle of the Chillicothe Police Department.
Two small children were rescued just inside the door. Eight others in the house, all believed to be from the same family, were able to get out, Lytle said.
Of those rescued, two children under the age of 2 were in critical condition and taken by helicopter to Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus. A man in serious condition was flown to Ohio State University Medical Center.
Two other men were treated at Adena Regional Medical Center and released.
Lytle said police were not releasing the identities of those hurt because they had not notified relatives.
State Fire Marshal's investigators were called. The house was heated with a kerosene heater and wood stove but it's too early to determine if they were a factor in the fire, which started at about 8 p.m., Lytle said.
Robin Huff, 19, who lives next door, said she was watching television when she heard someone screaming, "My baby! My baby!"
A man who had been in the house rescued one child from the fire, but another child was still inside. Firefighters got the other child out.
"There were flames everywhere," Huff said, adding that she briefly held a baby who was rescued by its father.
Charlotte Sparks, Huff's grandmother, called the scene next door a nightmare that brought back bad memories.
Sparks said about 20 years ago, she lost a daughter and two grandchildren in a fire.
jwoods@dispatch.com
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