Tragic end for 3-year-old in Diamond (+Video)

by Christina Smith

When emergency personnel left the scene of a house fire in Diamond, the older brother of a deceased toddler walked through the smoking cinders of the burnt-out family home, shouting for his baby brother to “come out”.

Unfortunately the teen’s calls would go unanswered as Kendie ‘KJ’ Johnson, who recently celebrated his third birthday, perished in the fire.

MOTHER of dead toddler Kendie “kJ” Johnson being updated by a police officer on the search for her son’s remains.

The boy’s mother, Roxanne Davis had to be supported by family, friends as well as the father of the dead toddler while fire and police officers combed through the debris searching for the child’s remains.

The fire that claimed the life of the three-year-old reportedly started around 2:25 pm on Wednesday, November 1 and quickly flattened the 25 ft x 30 ft two-bedroom wooden structure.

At the time of the fire, Davis’ three youngest children, KJ, a six-year-old boy and a female child, were at home alone as she had ventured away from the house to prepare food for sale. The two other children were able to escape from the house quickly and without injury, however KJ was trapped in a bedroom located to the back of the house.

Neighbours told SEARCHLIGHT that for several minutes they could hear the terrified toddler calling for help, but the intensity of the blaze prevented anyone from rendering assistance.

ALL THAT REMAINS is debris, after the 25 ft x 30 ft two-bedroom wooden structure was flattened by fire, killing a toddler.

Fire tenders arrived on the scene and after the blaze had died down, they worked for well over an hour searching through the area at the back of the house where they were eventually able to recover the child’s remains. In addition to the thickness of the debris, the search was complicated further by the fact that a burnt animal carcass was also found amongst the embers.

When KJ’s remains were handed over to the funeral service and the thick crowd of onlookers dispersed, one resident remained, lamenting the words of caution that she had given to the family over the years.

ROXANNE DAVIS, mother of 3-year-old fire victim Kendie “KJ” Johnson, gets a supporting hug from the child’s father and a family friend.

“I tired saying to them if you are going away just say ‘I not there,watch them children’. You don’t know what will happen.”

The resident, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, shed tears as she recounted the details of the fire.

“He stay there long because we hear him bawling for help. We couldn’t get to him. Nobody deserve that.”

It was reported that the two teenage brothers, age 14 and 13, had gone to assist their mother and were later alerted by neighbours that the house had gone up in flames. When they arrived back at the house, they looked on helplessly as the house crumbled in the blaze.

The resident told SEARCHLIGHT that she is heartbroken, adding she wishes that the warnings had been heeded and the toddler had been outside the residence at the time of the fire.

“I done see it and I tired talk to them.”

Shortly before 4 pm, the Fire Service left the scene to secure more water to assist with the search. When they returned, members of the Criminal Investigations Department as well as fire officers used a rake to separate the debris, which included household items and bedding, from the remains.

The toddler’s mother and father, as well as scores of residents remained in the area until the search was complete just after 6 pm.

The Royal St Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force, in a release, expressed condolences to the bereaved and said a post-mortem examination will be conducted on the body to ascertain the exact cause of death.

ROXANNE DAVIS

They are encouraging anyone with information that can assist with their ongoing investigations into the death of ‘KJ’ to call 999/911 or contact the Officer in charge of the South Central Division at 1-784-458-4200. All calls will be treated confidentially.