Girl, 14, dies in Fostoria house fire

FOSTORIA, Ohio (WTVG) - A 14-year-old girl died in a house fire Saturday morning in Fostoria, the fire chief said in a news release. Three firefighters were also treated at the hospital for minor injuries.

Crews were dispatched around 6:45 a.m. to a home on the 700-block of Oaklawn Avenue. Fostoria police officers told firefighters one person was unaccounted for when they arrived.

Firefighters found the 14-year-old girl, identified by the fire chief as Isabella Wallen, in her bedroom. They performed life-saving measures and transported her to Fostoria Community Hospital where she was pronounced dead.

Fostoria Fire Chief Brian Herbert told 13abc that Wallen initially escaped the house with her grandmother. Herbert said it’s believed Wallen ran back inside the home to save one of the family’s dogs.

All off-duty firefighters were called in to help fight the blaze, along with the Tiffin Fire Division and Bascom Fire and EMS crews.

The house had working smoke detectors, the chief said. The official cause is still under investigation, but it’s believed to be a result of the “improper use of a heating appliance,” the chief said.

“The Fostoria Fire Division would like to remind everyone that once you get out of a structure fire or any unsafe condition in your home or place of work, under no circumstances should you ever re-enter that structure,” the department wrote in its news release.

A GoFundMe was launched to help the family.

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