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HOVERBOARD TRAGEDY

Toddler dies after suffering horrific burns in house fire sparked by charging hoverboard

Hero firefighter also dies in car smash as he rushed to fight blaze

A THREE-year-old girl died in a horror house blaze sparked by a faulty hoverboard.

Little Ahsanti Hughes was killed when the gadget exploded while charging — causing a fire that destroyed an apartment building.

 A blaze at a Pennsylvania apartment building was sparked by a hoverboard that was plugged in to charge
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A blaze at a Pennsylvania apartment building was sparked by a hoverboard that was plugged in to charge
 Ahsanti Hughes, 3, died from horror burns suffered in the apartment blaze
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Ahsanti Hughes, 3, died from horror burns suffered in the apartment blazeCredit: Facebook
 A hoverboard exploded at the first floor flat in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania on Friday
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A hoverboard exploded at the first floor flat in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania on FridayCredit: Google

A hero firefighter also tragically died as he rushed to the scene in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

Fire Lt. Dennis DeVoe was driving when his car was smashed by a suspected car thief at a junction.

Khanyae Kendall, 19, fled the scene on Friday evening but was later arrested and has been charged with driving under the influence and aggravated assault among others.

 Fire Lt. Dennis DeVoe was killed as he rushed to tackle the fire
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Fire Lt. Dennis DeVoe was killed as he rushed to tackle the fireCredit: Facebook
 Ashanti, pictured with mum China Marie Hughes, died from severe burns
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Ashanti, pictured with mum China Marie Hughes, died from severe burnsCredit: Facebook

Ahsanti was rushed to hospital along with two other girls, a man and his teenage son. It is not clear if they are from the same family.

The two girls remain in critical condition while the man and teen have been released.

The fire broke out in a first floor apartment at around 7.45pm.

Survivors told of hearing the gadget "sizzling and cracking" before it "exploded in flames", Harrisburg Fire Chief Brian Enterline said, slamming the two-wheeled devices as "notorious".

 Firefighters spent hours tackling the blaze that started on Friday night, killing a three-year-old girl
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Firefighters spent hours tackling the blaze that started on Friday night, killing a three-year-old girl
 Lt. DeVoe, a married father, was a 21-year veteran with the Harrisburg Fire Department
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Lt. DeVoe, a married father, was a 21-year veteran with the Harrisburg Fire DepartmentCredit: Facebook

Witness Charles Allen told CBS channel that he saw young girls screaming and scrabbling to escape through the windows, with some even jumping out.

"Somebody was trying to kick out the window because of the smoke or whatever and then all of a sudden I hear a child hit the ground - boom," he said.

Ashanti died at Lehigh Valley burn center in Allentown, Pennsylvania,   reported.

Mark Hughes, Ashanti's grandfather, said: "I can't replace her. The pain is so deep. I'm so hurt. My soul is hurt."

 Ashanti died in hospital from her wounds. Her grandfather said: 'I can't replace her'
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Ashanti died in hospital from her wounds. Her grandfather said: 'I can't replace her'Credit: Facebook

Fire Lt. DeVoe, a married father, was a 21-year veteran with the Harrisburg Fire Department.

Chief Enterline described him as "a leader in our department and the fire service as a whole".

In January we told the story of the Heatley family who were forced out of their home in Barking, Essex after a hoverboard caught fire.

"We have lost everything in our home,” said mum-of-three Clare.

“We want the seller to realise it could have been a lot worse – we could have lost our lives.”


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