VIDEO/PHOTOS: Flames poured out of the second and third windows of an abandoned rowhome, lighting the early morning sky. Crews from multiple fire engines rushed inside, but within minutes the interior of the building collapsed, killing three firefighters and badly wounding a fourth. It was the Baltimore City Fire Department's worst on-duty loss of life since the mid 1950s.
"It was really heartbreaking for everybody there," Councilwoman Odette Ramos told Fox News. "We just have to do more. We just can't let something like that happen again."
The house on Stricker Street had been vacant for more than 10 years and experienced two previous fires, according to BCFD. The first fire, in 2015, resulted in a partial collapse that injured three firefighters and left the building compromised.