MADISON, Ind. — Several authorities are investigating after the tragic death of a 14-year-old in a house fire Wednesday morning.
According to a post on Jefferson County Indiana Sheriff's Office Facebook, the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office, Hanover Police Department, Madison Township Fire Department, Hanover Fire Department and Rykers Ridge Fire Department responded to a fire at the 3400 block of W. River Birch Drive around 7:30 a.m.
Madison Fire Chief Robert Black said "the neighbors valiantly tried to help with garden hoses and a bucket brigade" before he arrived on scene.
Ariana Ortiz-Roblero broke out the bedroom window where her daughter Dulce Martinez-Ortiz was, but officials said she couldn't reach her due to the intensity of the fire. Afterwards, EMS took her to the nearby airport before flying her to University of Louisville Hospital.
The post said deputies, officers and firefighters who responded to the scene also tried to reach Martinez-Ortiz, but were unable to.
Unfortunately, she died at the scene.
Detective-Sergeant Yancy Denning with the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office knew the teenage girl before Wednesday's tragedy.
"She was well-liked in the community, at her school. She was a freshman at Madison High School. I actually knew the family. I had been a school resource officer for two years before coming back to the sheriff’s department," he said.
Ortiz-Roblero and her two children escaped the fire with "minor injuries."
Gus Tripet expects his neighbor, Ortiz Roblero, to recover in the hospital, but knows some of the deeper wounds won’t heal.
“Body-wise, she might pull through but—you never pull through from losing a kid. I know, I lost one," he said.
The cause of the fire is unknown at this time, but the State Fire Marshal believes it's accidental.
The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office, Jefferson County Coroner's Office, Madison Township Fire Department and the Indiana State Fire Marshal's Office are investigating.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office at (812) 265-6089.
A GoFundMe has been set up if you'd like to support the family.
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