At 6 a. m. Friday morning, Tampa Fire Rescue and Tampa Police received fire call at 3613 East Diana Street. When they arrived, the house was engulfed in flames. Firefighters forced entry into the home, and pulled two young children to safety. Both were transported to Tampa General Hospital and reported to be in critical condition.

The mother and her 6-year-oild were able to escape, but the mother was burned and also hospitalized. The 6-year-old was not harmed.

Authorities later identified the mother of the children as 24-year-old Kimberly Mack. The children were identified as Chazmaine Small (6), Elijah Small (5), and Ja-niyah Grant, 18 months.

Ja-niyah’s grand-mother, Flestia Vaughn, said Monday that Ja-niyah passed away Sunday, and Ms. Mack said Elijah is still hospitalized and in a lot of pain.

Ms. Mack said they had moved into the house February 4th. She later recalled the events of Friday morning.

“I was awakened from my sleep, because I was hot. When I jumped from the bed, the house was full of smoke. My first thought was my children, so I went looking for a fire extinguisher. I couldn’t find one.

“Chazmaine was in the front of the house, so I told him to run out and get help. When I tried to get to my other children, my pants caught on fire, and I ran outside and tried to get help from my next door neighbor.”

Ms. Mack said there were no smoke detectors in the house, and the burglar bars covering the windows were the reason she couldn’t get her kids out.

“When we moved into the house, I was never comfortable with the burglar bars. I actually did a little test to see if I could get the kids through the burglar bars, and it didn’t work. “I did everything I could to get my children out. It hurts me that I’ve lost a child and another one is suffering.”

Ms. Mack’s mother, Tracy Parks, said she feels the landlord should have had smoke detectors installed in the house. “If there had been smoke detectors, everyone would have gotten out safe and unhurt.

“Right now, Kimberly is blaming herself, but it’s not her fault. She’s not holding up good at all, and we’re trying to do whatever we can to support her.”

Ms. Parks said her advice to all mothers is no matter how desperate your situation may be, don’t put our children in a dangerous situation.

Ms. Parks said Kimberly had no insurance on the house or for Ja-niyah, and they will need all the help they can get.