WEST BLOOMFIELD, Mich. (WXYZ) — Authorities in West Bloomfield executed a search warrant Tuesday on a home where three children died in a fire.
The fire happened at a home in the 5000 block of Pembury Lane just after 8 p.m. Sunday. A 16-year-old girl and two boys, ages 12 and 15, died in the fire.
The police chief and the fire marshal say this is a joint investigation, and a police cruiser has been keeping watch on the property since the fire happened.
Watch below: Neighbors mourn deaths of three kids killed in West Bloomfield house fire
The fire marshal said the three children were the only people home at the time and that it was reported they were unable to get out. Why that is and what went wrong are under investigation.
He said investigators will be checking doors and windows in order to try and figure out what happened.
That night, the father and the mother both came home to the active scene and could be seen breaking down in distress and visibly frantic.
Investigators have been in and out of the home on Tuesday as they executed the search warrant.
West Bloomfield Police Chief Dale Young told 7 News Detroit that items were seized from the home during the search. However, he would not say what those items were. The items are being analyzed and next steps in the investigation will be determined from there.
"We're making sure, as (the fire marshal) stated earlier, that we're dotting the i's and crossing the t's," Young said.
Investigators then returned to the scene to search a vehicle belonging to the victims' father. One officer placed items from the man's Lincoln into an evidence bag.
“The family is cooperating. The parents are being very cooperative. Just since three people lost their lives here, we’re taking extra precautions. Making sure that we have search warrants, making sure that we’re taking more pictures than we normally do. We don’t want to miss anything and have the outcome of this investigation jeopardized because we didn’t do something," Fire Marshal Byron Turnquist said.
Related Video: West Bloomfield fire marshal reminding families to check smoke detectors
The parents are not being considered suspects at this time.
“So, at this point in time we do not look at them as being a suspect. Again, as the fire marshal just told us is that we’re just trying to clarify the circumstances at this point," Young said.
After both searches on Tuesday, a tearful father and his 16-year-old daughter stopped by the home.
“I am so sorry… we feel very, very bad. She was my daughter’s friend from the high school,” George Reikany said.
Helen Reikany said tearfully, “She didn’t deserve this."
The teen said she came to see for herself to make sure it was indeed her friend from school who was killed.
“She was a very kind person. One everyone would adore," Reikany said.
