Overview
- The fire began on the Fourth of July when an illegal firework was launched through a window at Ashbrooke Apartments and ignited a blaze that killed 7-year-old Cashmere Elijah Parker.
- Harnett County Fire Marshal Rodney Daniels said the device was a multi-shot "cake-style" firework set off from about 100 feet away and investigators found it was improperly secured.
- The boy’s stepfather was seriously injured and taken to the hospital while two others were hospitalized and three were treated at the scene; four units were damaged and about 13 people were left without homes.
- Dunn police charged neighbor Brittany Armstrong with involuntary manslaughter, burning certain buildings, and possession of pyrotechnics; she was arrested after failing to turn herself in and made a first court appearance on July 8 with a $75,000 secured bond.
- Authorities are tracing where the illegal fireworks were obtained as relief groups including the Red Cross assist displaced families and the case raises questions about enforcement and the local availability of banned consumer pyrotechnics.