NORFOLK - A mother had been charged after her two children were pulled from their burning apartment late Wednesday.
Police spokesman Chris Amos said Precious Wright has been charged with two counts of felony child neglect.
Norfolk firefighters found the two girls, ages three and seven, unconscious on the bedroom floor of their home at Sumler Terrace Apartments on Mahone Ave.
When crews arrived in the Berkley area just after 11:00 p.m., there was smoke and flames coming from the first and second floors of the apartment.
The girl's mother was outside when they arrived and firefighters were told there were two children upstairs. They forced open the front door and then made their way through the smoke and heat to the second floor bedroom.
"You can't see anything, literally. You're working by feel" said Lt. Larry Phillips with Norfolk Fire and Rescue.
Phillips and two other firefighters found the girls passed out on the floor.
"It's gratifying," said Phillips. "I mean, you don't have that many opportunities to do real saves."
"It's unfortunate we do quite a few recoveries but not too many saves so it's extremely gratifying," he added.
After getting them to safety, the girls were taken to Sentara Norfolk General Hospital. Their condition isn't known.
According to NFD Battalion Chief Julian Williamson, “Three firefighters contributed to the survivability of two young children because they were able to use combined skills of fighting a fire and rescue efforts.”
There were smoke detectors in the apartment, but firefighters say they were not working.
A neighbor, Veronica Burnham, reminds people to check their smoke detectors. "Please make sure your house is safe for your chidlren and just please make sure everything is safe," said Burnham.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
