PHOENIX — Two more children have died after a condo fire sparked in Phoenix earlier this week.
At about 11 p.m. Wednesday, Phoenix Fire crews were called to a home near 35th and Northern avenues for reports of a fire. When they arrived, they found a condo unit with smoke and flames coming from the windows.
A man, identified as 52-year-old Shimone Boyer, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Four children were taken to a hospital in critical condition. The following day, two of the children, 7-year-old Dov Boyer and 8-year-old Nachman Boyer, were pronounced dead at the hospital.
On Saturday, Phoenix Police Department officials confirmed the other two children, 11-year-old Tamar Boyer and 9-year-old Shevach Boyer, also died at the hospital.
Steve Boyer, brother to Shimone and uncle to the children, arrived in the Valley as soon as he heard the news about what happened to his family.
He spoke with ABC15 and described his brother as a dedicated father and Rabbi.
For the last six years, the two have been raising four children who are all under the age of 12.
“If I was there, could I have done something?” questioned Boyer. “Could have smelled it, maybe?”
The cause of the fire has not yet been determined, but firefighters say there is no indication that it was suspicious at this time.
Dawn Harris, a family friend of Shimone, says she found out about the family's passing through their Jewish communities.
"I was shocked. I didn't want to believe it," she said.
Harris lives in another state, however, she met Shimone six years ago, and they’d talk about every other week about their kids.
“We connected because I have children with disabilities. And I noticed that his kids had disabilities. And so I was able to help him obtain different connections to resources he needed,” Harris told ABC15.
Harris said they pushed each other to be better people, adding that Shimone was working hard to help his children with their needs.
“For six years we spoke a lot and shared a lot and so suddenly to not have him there was hard,” Harris said, getting emotional. “To know my sweet Tamar was in the hospital and I couldn't be there to hold her hands was hard.”
A GoFundMe has been organized to help cover memorial costs for the family.
