Apr 6, 2008 10:49 am US/Eastern
Sisters Killed In South Boston Fire
BOSTON (WBZ) ―
Two sisters are dead after a fast moving fire ripped through their family's South Boston home early Sunday morning.
Fourteen-year-old C.C. Johnson and her 3-year-old sister, Sophia, were on the top floor of the triple-decker on West 6th Street when the fire broke out around 3 a.m.
"This district chief immediately requested a second alarm upon arrival. There were reports of people in the building. There were in fact people in the building... We had two fatalities in the third floor and the rear," said Boston Fire Chief Robert Calobris.
The two girls were found in a third floor closet. Officials say their bodies are still inside the charred home.
Relatives say C.C. was very protective of her little sister. Family members tell WBZ's Sera Congi everyone is overcome by grief. "They were always dressed so pretty," said Aida Ramos, a relative of the two girls. "They were good girls."
The girls' mother, who family members identify as Anna Rasopolis, and their brother were rushed to the hospital for treatment of non-life threatening injuries.
Fire officials are now trying to determine the cause of the blaze. Boston police were searching the neighborhood after the fire -- fueling speculation that the fire may have been set.
Boston Mayor Tom Menino visited the fire scene Sunday afternoon. "Very tragic scene," he said. "Our prayers go out to the family."
Rasopolis is essentially a single mother. The father of all three kids is in prison.
According to the Red Cross, they are helping eight adults and two children who were also affected by the fire.
(© 2008 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
