Ali Aysheh, 7, left, Mohammed Aysheh, 2, middle, and their sister, Yusra Badra, 15, right.
Terrytown Volunteer Fire Department, David Crockett Fire Department and Harvey Volunteer Fire Co. stay on the scene of a fatal house fire in the 500 block of Lynnmeade Road in Unincorporated Gretna, La., Friday, Sept. 16, 2022. Three kids died due to the fire. (Photo by Sophia Germer, NOLA.com, The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate)
A person is consoled after a fire in the 500 block of Lynnmeade Road in Unincorporated Gretna, La., Friday, Sept. 16, 2022. Three kids died due to the fire. (Photo by Sophia Germer, NOLA.com, The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate)
Westbank Fire Chief Don Robertson and Sheriff Joseph Lopintoin answer questions following a fire in the 500 block of Lynnmeade Road in Unincorporated Gretna, La., Friday, Sept. 16, 2022. Three kids died due to the fire. (Photo by Sophia Germer, NOLA.com, The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate)
Brady, a Labrador Retriever with the Louisiana Office of State Fire Marshal, is brought out for a routine search for anything that could suggest arson, after a fire in the 500 block of Lynnmeade Road in Unincorporated Gretna, La., Friday, Sept. 16, 2022. Three kids died due to the fire. (Photo by Sophia Germer, NOLA.com, The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate)
Investigators inspect the scene of a fire in the 500 block of Lynnmeade Road in Unincorporated Gretna, La., Friday, Sept. 16, 2022. Three kids died due to the fire. (Photo by Sophia Germer, NOLA.com, The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate)
Ibtisam Esmail, a cousin of the family, describes the 3 kids who passed away of smoke inhalation during a fire in the 500 block of Lynnmeade Road in Unincorporated Gretna, La., Friday, Sept. 16, 2022. (Photo by Sophia Germer, NOLA.com, The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate)
Coroner walks onto the scene of a fire that killed 3 kids in the 500 block of Lynnmeade Road in Unincorporated Gretna, La., Friday, Sept. 16, 2022. (Photo by Sophia Germer, NOLA.com, The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate)
Ali Aysheh, 7, left, Mohammed Aysheh, 2, middle, and their sister, Yusra Badra, 15, right.
Terrytown Volunteer Fire Department, David Crockett Fire Department and Harvey Volunteer Fire Co. stay on the scene of a fatal house fire in the 500 block of Lynnmeade Road in Unincorporated Gretna, La., Friday, Sept. 16, 2022. Three kids died due to the fire. (Photo by Sophia Germer, NOLA.com, The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate)
Brady, a Labrador Retriever with the Louisiana Office of State Fire Marshal, is brought out for a routine search for anything that could suggest arson, after a fire in the 500 block of Lynnmeade Road in Unincorporated Gretna, La., Friday, Sept. 16, 2022. Three kids died due to the fire. (Photo by Sophia Germer, NOLA.com, The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate)
Ibtisam Esmail, a cousin of the family, describes the 3 kids who passed away of smoke inhalation during a fire in the 500 block of Lynnmeade Road in Unincorporated Gretna, La., Friday, Sept. 16, 2022. (Photo by Sophia Germer, NOLA.com, The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate)
Coroner walks onto the scene of a fire that killed 3 kids in the 500 block of Lynnmeade Road in Unincorporated Gretna, La., Friday, Sept. 16, 2022. (Photo by Sophia Germer, NOLA.com, The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate)
Firefighters called to extinguish a raging fire at an unincorporated Gretna home Friday morning made a heart-stopping discovery after entering the burning residence — an unconscious 7-year-old boy lying at the bottom of a staircase.
Neighbor Jason Rousse watched as firefighters carried Ali Aysheh out of the house and placed him on the grass in the front yard of his family’s home. Within moments, they emerged with another unconscious boy, Ali’s little brother, 2-year-old Mohammad Aysheh.
A person is consoled after a fire in the 500 block of Lynnmeade Road in Unincorporated Gretna, La., Friday, Sept. 16, 2022. Three kids died due to the fire. (Photo by Sophia Germer, NOLA.com, The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate)
And as the firefighters performed CPR on the children, Rousse said crews brought yet another sibling out of the house, 15-year-old Yusra Badra.
Yusra was pronounced dead at the scene. And though her brothers were rushed to a nearby hospital, they, too, died, authorities and heartbroken family members said.
A number of family members gathered at the hospital.
"We've dispatched our chaplain service to them," Jefferson Parish Sheriff Joseph Lopinto said from the scene.
Autopsies performed later Friday determined each child died of smoke inhalation, according to the Jefferson Parish Coroner's Office.
"It's a sad, sad day," said Rousse, 40, whose young daughter sometimes played with Ali and Mohammad.
Investigators with the East Bank Consolidated Fire Department, the Terrytown Volunteer Fire Department and the Louisiana State Fire Marshal’s Office are working to determine the cause of the two-alarm blaze, which destroyed the family's two-story home in the 500 block of Lynnmeade Road, according to Don Robertson, director of Fire Services for Jefferson Parish.
State Fire Marshal Dan Wallis said the fire appears to have started on the first floor.
"To my knowledge, there's no indication of anything suspicious," he said.
Family members who gathered near the residence Friday morning said Yusra was babysitting her little brothers when the fire broke out.
"They were very good kids," said Ibtisam Esmail, a cousin. Yusra "took care of her brothers.”
The fire was reported around 9:32 a.m., according to Robertson. The 911 center received several calls, the Sheriff's Office said.
Investigators inspect the scene of a fire in the 500 block of Lynnmeade Road in Unincorporated Gretna, La., Friday, Sept. 16, 2022. Three kids died due to the fire. (Photo by Sophia Germer, NOLA.com, The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate)
Rousse was inside his home when he noticed a strong burning smell.
"I walked outside, and the fire was coming out of that bottom window," he said, pointing to a large window in the center of the first floor with a black iron grate across part of it.
"The flames were rolling," he said. "Then the smoke started coming out of the other windows up top."
A crew from the Terrytown Volunteer Fire Department was the first to arrive, according to Robertson. With smoke and fire pouring from the residence, the department struck a second alarm after learning from a bystander that someone might be inside the home, he said.
Westbank Fire Chief Don Robertson and Sheriff Joseph Lopintoin answer questions following a fire in the 500 block of Lynnmeade Road in Unincorporated Gretna, La., Friday, Sept. 16, 2022. Three kids died due to the fire. (Photo by Sophia Germer, NOLA.com, The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate)
While firefighters found Ali lying at the bottom of the staircase, Mohammad was at the top of the stairs. His sister was lying on top of him, according to Wallis.
About two hours after the fire, a tearful man who identified himself as Yusra's father hurried to the yellow tape cordoning off the street and told Lopinto, "My daughter was in that house. Where is she?"
The siblings have the same mother, the man explained, but he was her ex-husband and Yusra's father. Lopinto lifted up the tape and ushered the man and the man's brother to an area where he could reveal to them what happened.
Within moments, the father's head dropped and his brother put a supportive hand to his back. They were soon joined by a third brother, and all three men embraced one another.
Firefighters battled the blaze for about 30 minutes before it was extinguished, Robertson said. One firefighter was taken to the hospital with a possible back injury. His condition was not immediately available.
Grief counselors from the New Orleans Fire Department were scheduled to meet with firefighters at the station Friday afternoon, Robertson said.
"It's tough on any fireman — a veteran fireman — to have three fatalities, especially three children," he said. "We want to be able to make sure that they can get their concerns out and talk to somebody that can help them so they don't keep it inside like they used to do in the old days.”
Staff writer Ben Myers contributed to this story.
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