Early-Morning Fire Kills 3 Maryland Children

BURTONSVILLE, Md. --

Three girls are dead and a woman is in critical condition after an early-morning apartment fire in Burtonsville, Md., officials said.

The fire broke out about 4:45 a.m. in an apartment building in the 13800 block of Greencastle Boulevard at the Windsor Court Apartments, officials said.

The woman and three children, ages 1, 2 and 4, were all unconscious when firefighters arrived, officials said. The girls all died from smoke inhalation.

The woman is being treated at the R. Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore, officials said.

Fire Department spokesman Pete Piringer said it's believed the fire started in the apartment's kitchen.

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