(Reuters) - Two children and their parents died and two other children were critically injured on Saturday in a house fire in Indianapolis, said a spokeswoman for the Indianapolis Fire Department.
Firefighters responded to the blaze at the one-story house shortly after 9 a.m. local time and found the whole family of six trapped inside, said department spokeswoman Rita Reith. The victims were pulled out of the house into the front yard where emergency workers tried to resuscitate them before they were taken to a hospital, Reith said.
Lionel Guerra, 47, Brandy Mae Guerra, 33, Esteban Guerra, 11, and Blanquita Guerra, 8 were all pronounced dead at the hospital. The other two children, ages 6 and 14, are hospitalized in critical condition, Reith said.
"Area residents were devastated by the loss of life this morning and many stopped to cry and pray for the family," Reith said in a news release.
Firefighters got the fire under control in minutes but the house had heavy interior damage, she said.
"Investigators have only begun to process the scene hoping to find a cause for this tragedy," Reith said.
(Reporting By Kevin Murphy in Kansas City, Mo,)