Two children found unresponsive in closet during Wichita apartment fire
Two children are in police protective custody after being found unresponsive in a closet during an apartment fire early Wednesday.
The blaze was reported around 1 a.m. at the River Walk Apartments southeast of Pawnee and Broadway, according to Sedgwick County Emergency Communications 911 scanner traffic.
A 25-year-old woman and resident of the south Wichita apartment complex reported that she was awakened by the smell of something burning. While trying to find the source of the smell, she found two young children unconscious in a closet.
Both children were taken to a hospital in critical condition to be treated for smoke inhalation.
“At this time, the children have been placed in police protective custody,” Chief Public Information Officer Andrew Ford wrote in an email to The Eagle.
Because the investigation is ongoing, the Wichita Police Department did not disclose whether the children and the 25-year-old woman were related or why the children were taken into protective custody. Additional information will be reported as it becomes available.
