UPDATE: Mother of children killed in motel fire dies from her injuries
Colorado Springs Police say the mother of two children who were killed in a motel fire has died, leaving behind one child who continues to recover from his injuries.
Brandy Jones, 33, died Thursday afternoon. The El Paso County Coroner’s Office performed an autopsy and determined that Jones died from smoke inhalation.
Her children Cheyenne Jones, 2, and Wade Jones, 4, died in the May 30 fire.
The children’s 10-year-old brother is in stable condition and police say he is recovering. His name has not been released.
The fire happened at the Ranch Motel in the 3900 Block of North Nevada Avenue.
The fire department says that there was a smoke detector in the room where the fire started, but that the battery had been removed. The department says it also found the following fire code violations at the motel:
No working smoke alarms in the rental units.
Smoke alarms were found to be more than 10 years old and had no batteries installed. Electrical issues were found throughout the complex.
The fire department says the Ranch Motel was built in 1948 and 1949 and it has been unable to confirm whether the building is code compliant with the original building codes.
CSFD says the room where the fire happened would not have met current fire code.
Investigators are considering the possibility an arsonist started the fire.
A witness told arriving firefighters the family was still inside their burning basement motel unit. Firefighters got the family out of the unit and began performing CPR on one of the girls.
Nathaniel Cleveland, a resident of the motel, who is the mother’s brother and the children’s uncle, was devastated.
“(My sister’s) boyfriend was crying,” Cleveland said. “I asked him where my niece and nephews were and he said they were still in the apartment. I just snapped.”
Between hugs of support from neighbors, Cleveland reflected on the tragedy and blamed himself.
“(My sister and her kids) were in a fire on Potter Drive a year ago,” he said. “I was the one who told them to come stay here. When my brother passed away seven months ago, I promised to look after them. It seems like I failed them.”
The fire’s cause is unknown but firefighters, suspecting the possibility of arson, asked the police Major Crimes Unit to investigate.
It is expected that this will be a lengthy investigation due to the nature and severity of the fire. Items recovered from the fire scene will need to be tested in a laboratory.
