Mom Dies Trying to Save Baby from Burning Home: Fire Chief

A Texas woman died after she helped her two older children escape their burning home and then went back inside the blaze to try and save her infant son, according to local officials.

The mother and baby boy both died in the Saturday morning house fire at their Houston, Texas residence, according to a statement from the House Fire Department (HFD).

HFD Chief Sam Peña described the situation as "tragic."

"The recommendation once you're outside, stay outside," the chief told local media. "How do you tell that to a mother whose child is inside the home?"

Firefighters responded to the blaze, which neighbors said started around 4 a.m., at the home on Heaney Drive, the department said.

The 31-year-old mother was home with her three children, including her 1-year-old son who died in the fire and the two children who survived, according to local media. Additional details about the family were not available at the time of publication.

Newsweek reached out via email on Saturday night to the HFD for comment and an update on the incident.

Peña said in a post on X, formerly Twitter, that the mother ran back into the flames to save her infant but was unable to make it back out.

"House fire resulted in tragic death of young mother & infant son as she reentered the home in attempt to rescue her child from the flames," the chief wrote in the X post. "Our prayers & condolences to the family."

The two surviving children are under 10 years old and are now with relatives, according to HFD.

A woman who identified herself as the adult victim's sister described the heartbreaking situation to local station KTRK. She did not want to be identified.

"My sister took my niece and my nephew out (and went back for) the 1-year-old," the family member said to the station. "But they said she didn't make it. The baby was in her arms."

She said that her sister was a "hero."

"My sister was a hero because she took them out and nothing happened to them," she said about her sister rescuing the two older children.

HFD said when crews arrived at the scene, firefighters encountered "heavy fire conditions." Photos shared by Peña show the aftermath of the blaze, showing the charred remnants of the home.

The house was so heavily damaged by the fire that it was unclear whether it was a one or two-story building. When asked by local media to confirm the details of the house, the fire department was unable to provide the information due to the extent of the damage.

A neighbor told KTRK that she heard children shouting for help in Spanish through the mail slot on her door shortly before 5 a.m.

When she got to the door, the neighbor said she saw two children, without shoes, and the house across the street engulfed in flames.

The cause and origin of the fire was unknown as of Saturday, Peña said, adding that an investigation is ongoing.