Toledo girl dies from severe smoke inhalation - 13abc.com Toledo (OH) News, Weather and Sports

Toledo girl dies from severe smoke inhalation

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TOLEDO, Ohio -

It's a sad update to a story about a house fire nearly one month ago. This weekend a 7-year-old Toledo girl died after being hospitalized for smoke inhalation.

The Pope family escaped the fire during the early morning hours. Three out of the four family members suffered serious injuries during the blaze.

After weeks in the hospital, 7-year-old Kaitlyn Pope passed away Friday morning from extreme smoke inhalation.

Her parents were just recently released from the hospital. Her father, George, is still battling coughs and serious skin burns. Both parents say each day is a struggle.

On July 1, flames broke out inside the family's Dover Place home in east Toledo. 12-year-old Kyle was the first to run out for help.

"He ran out the back door screaming, and the neighbors grabbed him and held him back because he was taught at school to never go back in, but he wanted to go back in, because he could hear his sister yelling," says mother Cindy Pope.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation. While the landlord makes repairs to the Dover home, volunteers are helping the Pope family relocate their belongings to Oregon.

Kaitlyn was supposed to be a third grader at Raymer Elementary this year. Now her parents are trying to cope with their loss.

"She was just an angel," says George. "Every day I'd get off work, she'd come nearly knock me down, and that's what I'm going to miss. I mean, she's my baby."

A fund is set up for the Pope family at Huntington Bank.

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