5-Year-Old Boy Dies Days After Being Pulled From Burning DC Apartment

A 5-year-old boy has died days after he was pulled from a burning apartment in Southeast D.C.

The fire broke out on the afternoon of March 9 in a ground-floor apartment in the 3300 block of 6th Street SE.

Two boys, the 5-year-old and a 9-year-old, were inside at the time. Investigators are still trying to figure out if the children were alone in the apartment, police said Friday.

Both boys were rushed to a hospital, the younger boy with critical, life-threatening injuries, D.C. Fire & EMS said. The little boy died earlier this week, police confirmed Friday to News4.

The 9-year-old boy was taken to a hospital in serious condition. Police declined to provide an update on his condition Friday.

The building where the fire broke out is in the Congress Heights area of D.C., near the border with Maryland. Images provided by D.C. Fire & EMS showed a three-story brick garden-style building with multiple ladders extending to second-floor apartments and to the roof.

Update Workout Fire 3300 block 6th St SE. 3 children have been transported. 1 critical life threatening injuries, 1 serious injuries, 1 for hospital evaluation. #DCsBravest pic.twitter.com/H2Bf42bKt5

— DC Fire and EMS (@dcfireems) March 9, 2023

Both children were in the apartment where the fire occurred, officials previously said. The 5-year-old boy was pulled out by firefighters; the 9-year-old was already outside when crews arrived.

Firefighters sheltered multiple other residents on balconies due to heavy smoke in the hallways, they said. Several other residents were treated at the scene of the fire.

The fire did not appear spread to any other units. Smoke alarms were present and working.

The cause of the fire has yet to be determined, but it is not suspicious in nature, police said Friday.