BENTONVILLE : Heater believed linked to deadly house fire
Posted on Thursday, March 27, 2008
BENTONVILLE — Flowers, stuffed animals, photographs and cards make up a growing memorial to five girls who perished in a Bentonville fire early Tuesday.
“Remember the girls as nothing less than pure angels !” was written on a bulletin board left outside the home where the girls died in a room they shared.
“They were angels,” said Cindy Tresler, an aunt of Kristan Frazier, 13; Kimberly Frazier, 11; Katelyn Mahmens, 9; Kaila Frazier, 8; and Kiya Frazier, 5.
The sisters died in a fire authorities believe was accidental.
Parents Jamie Dale Frazier, 33, and Karry A. Mahmens Frazier, 27, escaped without injury after being unable to reach their daughters, who were sleeping in an upstairs room.
Tresler and a cousin, Kelly Edwards, checked on the memorial Wednesday.
Tresler described Kristan as “the mother hen.” The girl took care of all of her sisters, who called her “Nana,” she said. Kim was a “sweet little princess,” on the honor roll and in the choir, she said.
Katelyn was happy-go-lucky, she said. She loved to sing and make people happy. Kaila “was a character,” she said. Kiya “was the baby,” adorable and sweet, Tresler said.
“They will always be in your heart,” Tresler told one of the girl’s classmates who stopped by to contribute to the memorial.
Not all who came to the house had connections to the family.
“We just came to show we love and we care,” said Eileen Wilkerson. Her church, Rogers Christian Church, has asked its members to help the family through donations of furniture or anything else, Wilkerson said. The smell of burnt wood still
1 clung to the 1 / 2-story house at 402 S. W. B Street. Shards of glass and charred wood littered the concrete driveway. Plastic Easter eggs and a roller skate were among the possessions left in the yard. Robert Mahmens, an uncle, said he envied the family’s love. “I envied what they have — I would be lucky to have that,” Mahmens said. The family had rented the home for four or five years, and they were working on buying it, Mahmens said. He had helped remodel the house, where his sister was a stay-at-home mom.
Michael J. Bedford, who owns the house, said he was shaken by news of the deaths.
“When I heard about it I prayed for the family,” Bedford said. “We’re certainly distressed.”
An oil-filled radiator-style electric heater is thought to have caused the fire, but the investigation continues, said Bentonville Fire Chief Dan White.
The heater was found in the girls’ room, between the foot of one of two beds and the wall, where the fire originated. It was too damaged to determine the make and model, he said. The unit will be examined at the state Crime Laboratory in Little Rock.
There was about 18 to 24 inches of clearance around the heater, which is less than what is typically recommended by manufacturers, White said.
Firefighters responded two minutes after the emergency call came in, but the fire had already escalated — White couldn’t say for how long. The parents were awakened by a smoke detector on the first floor. There was a smoke alarm upstairs that didn’t have batteries.
Police said small amounts of methamphetamine and marijuana were found at the house and could lead to criminal charges.
Benton County Prosecuting Attorney Van Stone is conducting an investigation into the drugs.
Robert Mahmens and other family members expressed their frustration Wednesday over media reports of past police calls to the house. They had Bentonville attorney Brad Karren issue a brief statement of appreciation for support from the community.
“We would also like to thank the many firefighters who fought bravely to save our dear children,” the statement reads. “Their courage and efforts will never be forgotten.”
At Sugar Creek Elementary School, where the three youngest girls attended, counselors encouraged children to express their emotions through handson projects.
Katelyn was a third grader, Kaila was a first grader and Kiya was in kindergarten at Sugar Creek.
The school’s staff searched for ways to help children identify their feelings associated with death, which is a new concept to many children, counselor Julie Alexander said.
“You just have to be honest and tell them what happened and clear up any misconceptions about what happened,” she said.
Students spent time Wednesday writing letters and drawing pictures of their favorite times with the girls to contribute to a packet that the school will eventually give to the girls’ parents, Alexander said.
The project was part of a districtwide crisis plan, in which counselors from all schools move to the schools most directly effected by the situation to offer one-on-one counseling to students.
Alexander spent Wednesday in appointments, mostly with older students who were more emotionally responsive to the deaths.
“I’ve been busy all day long,” she said. Information for this article was contributed by Evie Blad and Richard Massey of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
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