A violent fire ravaged a family home during the night from Saturday to Sunday in Amanvillers (Moselle), a town located 15 km northwest of Metz. If the parents and their two children aged 1 and 3 managed to escape the flames, their 7 year old son, Milo, lost his life, as reported by France 3.
The alert was given around 1:40 a.m. According to Lieutenant-Colonel Gaël Zimmer, of the Departmental Fire and Rescue Service (SDIS) of Moselle, interviewed by The Lorraine Republican, “the house fire was violent from the moment the call was made”. The firefighters, mobilizing nearly 50 agents and around twenty vehicles, intervened quickly. Despite their efforts, the flames had already engulfed the entire house, making any intrusion impossible.
“There were five occupants inside the home, two adults and three children. Two adults and two children were able to evacuate before emergency services arrived, and one child was missing. He was found deceased.”specified Gaël Zimmer.
A bereaved family and a mobilized village
The parents and two little girls, shocked but unhurt, were taken to hospital before finding shelter with relatives. In a few hours, the solidarity of the 2000 inhabitants of Amanvillers was quickly manifested. Loïc Pham Van, friend of the father, launched an appeal for donations on Sunday. “They lost everything, we can’t leave them like this”he told the regional daily.
-A center has been set up at the Maison des Jeunes et de la Culture (MJC) to centralize clothing, toys and basic necessities. The town hall also offered temporary rehousing in an apartment located above the Post Office. The tragedy affected the entire village, in particular the Serge-Gauche school, where young Milo attended school. A psychological unit was activated this Monday morning to support students and teachers.
An investigation was opened by the Metz public prosecutor's office and entrusted to the gendarmerie, in order to determine the causes of the tragedy. No hypothesis is currently favored, and an expert has been commissioned to examine the site.
