Six people, including four children, died after a fire engulfed a home in Charles County, Maryland, Sunday morning, according to the Maryland State Fire Marshal’s Office.<\/p>\n
Firefighters were called around 8:40 a.m. to the 3000 block of Declaration Court North in Waldorf, where a house was engulfed in flames.<\/p>\n
Deputy state fire marshals, the Charles County Sheriff’s Office, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) \u00a0and local volunteer fire and EMS crews assisted with search and recovery.<\/p>\n
The State Fire Marshal’s Office said two residents escaped unharmed, and an adult arrived at the home while the fire department was on scene.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Crews worked to bring the fire under control while searching for victims. Ultimately, they found two other adults and four children dead inside the home.<\/p>\n
Investigators said there is no evidence of a criminal act, but the cause of the fire has not yet been determined.<\/p>\n
Study highlights cancer risk among firefighters <\/p>\n
Earlier this month, a Maryland volunteer fire department hosted a cancer screening for firefighters.<\/p>\n
While research has shown that firefighters are at a high risk of being diagnosed with some form of cancer, a new study by the American Cancer Society noted that certain cancers pose an even deadlier threat.<\/p>\n
The study, published in the International Journal of Epidemiology last week, determined that an increased risk of mortality for most cancers in firefighters, but\u00a0especially with kidney and skin cancers<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n For kidney cancer, the study found firefighters had a 40% higher mortality rate than those who weren’t firefighters. For skin cancer, the mortality rate is 58% higher.<\/p>\n