Names of fire victims released
Chattanooga fire investigators released the names of two children killed in a Monday afternoon fire.
Seven-month-old Olivia Bennett and 3-year-old Michael White died in a 6215 Bonny Oaks Drive apartment fire reported at 2:40 p.m. on Monday, according to a fire department news release.
Engine companies arrived at the scene to find the mother, Alfredda Bennett, outside the burning apartment, said Capt. Terri D. Whiteside, public information officer with the department.
Ms. Bennett told police she’d stepped away from the home for just minutes to speak with a neighbor and when she came back she saw the smoke and flames, according to police.
The children’s 9-year-old brother, reportedly autistic and watching his siblings, alerted a bystander to the fire and that he couldn’t get them out of the home.
Senior firefighter Joshua Burchard found the children in an upstairs bedroom and carried Olivia to emergency personnel while firefighter Darin Honeycutt carried Michael out of the burning building, Capt. Whiteside said.
Olivia was pronounced dead at the scene and Michael White was pronounced dead at T.C. Thompson Children’s Hospital, the captain said.
The fire’s cause and manner of death of the children is under investigation.
Man found in creek identified
A man found dead in Chickamauga Creek had been missing since Saturday, when he ran into the woods after choking his girlfriend during an argument, police said.
One of the man’s family members found the body of 41-year-old William Harris on Monday in the creek between Walmart and Brainerd Road, according to a Chattanooga Police Department news release.
Mr. Harris’ girlfriend reported that he fled into the woods after choking her during an argument at the nearby Murphy Oil gas station on Saturday. After Mr. Harris did not return home Sunday a family member went looking for him where he last was seen and found the body in the creek.
Police say the manner of death has not been determined and the remains are with the Hamilton County Medical Examiner’s office for an autopsy.