Update: Mother and young child killed in Rochester apartment fire
Two people died Thursday evening in a fire at an apartment complex in northeast Rochester. The victims have been identified as Melissa Ann Phiefer, 35, and her 2-year-old daughter Emily.
Firefighters responded to a four-unit building at 409 27th Street NE around 5:45 p.m. after receiving multiple calls of heavy smoke coming from the building.
According to the fire department, the mother was pronounced dead at the scene; the child was later pronounced dead at St. Marys Hospital.
Multiple other people were safely rescued from the building.
A preliminary investigation revealed the fire was caused by "smoking materials left on a futon." Five people from the apartment complex were displaced by the fire and are receiving assistance from the Red Cross.
You can listen to audio from the fire department here.
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