A 4-year-old girl has died and her two siblings remain in a critical condition from smoke inhalation after a fire gutted their condominium in the city of Saitama, police said Thursday.
The three children, who were found collapsed after the blaze, lived with their mother, Ayumu Owada, who was out when the fire began at around 9:50 p.m. Wednesday, the police said.
Yume, 4, was pronounced dead at a hospital while a 5-year-old boy and an 8-month-old girl remained unconscious, the police said.
According to local firefighters, about 20 fire engines were dispatched to the first-floor unit. The fire was under control within about 30 minutes. The kitchen was most severely burned, they said.
A 50-year-old woman who lives on the same floor said the Owada residence was dark and quiet at the time of the blaze.
"The children might have been sleeping," she said.