Matthew Cohen was at home. It was just after 10:45 p.m. on Saturday night. The glow of the TV shined through the room, when he heard what he called a boom.
“…a big explosion. So we came running outside and that’s when I saw the house on fire,” Cohen said. He lives near Stone Hearth Road in Severn.
Three Killed in Overnight Dwelling fire in AACO Severn @WMAR2News follows the tragic story pic.twitter.com/sb5Kz5jL6M
— manny locke (@realmannynation) April 22, 2018
Shortly after, Matthew went outside and saw flames coming from a neighboring home, one where he regularly talked to the people who lived there.
While he didn’t know them, know them – Cohen ran to help.
“Myself and a couple of other residents tried to run up and help the people that were in there. We got four people out, but the other guy was laying there. We couldn’t get in. The smoke came too fast,” he said.
45 firefighters, primarily from the Anne Arundel County Fire Department, rushed to the home, racing to put out the fire and save whoever was inside.
“When the firefighters first arrived here, they had heavy fire from the rear of this one-story, single-family dwelling and some of the occupants who had escaped prior to their arrival were advising the firefighters that they thought some was still inside,” Captain Russ Davies, the spokesman with the fire department, said.
Three people were inside: two men who lived there and a woman who worked there.
All three of them died.
The non-profit, Arundel Lodge, runs the house which operates a group home.
Severn Group hm AACO goes up in flames 3 dead in tragic fire @WMAR2News has details pic.twitter.com/tZ8SoWxvsq
— manny locke (@realmannynation) April 22, 2018
Neighbors who saw the aftermath of the blast say those were able to escape were simply stunned.
“You could just see the shock on their faces and we all stood and looked at the fire. It’s very devastating knowing that three people lost their lives,” Tee Cohen, a neighbor, said.
Fire investigators say smoke detectors were working in the home, but they’re still looking for a cause.
Matthew could only look on.
“They were cool,” he said referring to those inside the group home. “They were cordial. They’d speak. They were helpful and they weren’t a problem or anything. It seemed like a good group of people,” he said.
The fire department has yet to release the names of victims until their families are notified.Anyone who may have information on the fire or happens to have pictures or video of the fire is asked to call them at 410-222-TIPS.
