Dec 20, 2007 6:39 pm US/Pacific
3 Dead In Vallejo Fire; Man Sought For Questioning
VALLEJO (CBS 5 / KCBS / AP / BCN) ―
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Investigators at the scene of Thursday's fatal blaze in Vallejo.
CBS
Investigators were seeking to talk with a "person of interest" in connection with a two-alarm fire that roared through a Vallejo home and killed three people early Thursday morning, authorities said.
Two men and a baby died in the blaze that was reported just after midnight in a single family home at 7 Emerald Circle, said Vallejo Fire Department spokesman William Tweedy.
The Solano County coroner's office identified the victims as 60-year old Douglas Dike, his 56-year old brother David Dike and 11-month old Benjamin Sickels.
All three victims received third-degree burns over 100 percent of their bodies and autopsies were scheduled for Friday, Sheriff's Deputy Adrian Garcia.
Amber Quiros told CBS 5 that the trio killed in the blaze was her father, uncle and baby nephew.
"It's very sad. It's something I'd never wish on anybody," she said, weeping as she recalled the short life of her nephew.
"He didn't even make it. Oh my God! He was so joyful," she exclaimed. "He was smart, I don't even understand why this thing happened. I guess this is our Merry Christmas, huh?"
The bodies of the victims were found by firefighters after they extinguished the flames in about 40 minutes and entered the two-story home, located south of Six Flags Marine World.
One of the Dykes brothers was found in a bedroom and the other brother was found in another bedroom with the infant, officials said.
Quiros said her mother, 55-year old Teresa Dykes, escaped the fire by climbing down a ladder from the roof of the home. She was listed is in critical condition at Kaiser Hospital in Vallejo.
"She basically said she was awoke by the smoke and the house was filled with smoke and she went out the window," Quiros said.
Vallejo police Lt. Rick Nichelman said seven people lived in the home and detectives were looking for a man who was an on-again, off-again boyfriend of Quiros.
The man - considered by police to be a "person of interest" - was home earlier in the evening Wednesday but was not seen at the fire, Nichelman said.
"He knows we're looking for him. We hope he comes in to talk to us," Nichelman said. "We are looking to get a statement and at least talk to him and try to lock down what occurred."
Throughout the day on Thursday, investigators with the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms joined local fire investigators in digging through the rubble of the home to try and determine what sparked it.
Nichelman said the fire started downstairs near a Christmas tree but the cause remained undetermined.
He added that investigators were treating the house as a crime scene because of the deaths.
(© CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. The Associated Press and Bay City News contributed to this report.)
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