3 young upstate N.Y. boys killed in house fire

[November 04, 2008]  HARTLAND, N.Y. (AP) -- Authorities in western New York state say a house fire has killed three young boys and seriously injured their grandmother.

The fire was reported late Monday in Hartland, a rural town 25 miles northeast of Buffalo, and firefighters say the house was engulfed in flames when they arrived.

Firefighters found the bodies of the three boys -- ages 5, 6 and 8 -- inside the house.

The Niagara County sheriff's department says the boys' grandmother, 59-year-old Leona Heigl, was taken to Erie County Medical Center in Buffalo for treatment of smoke inhalation.

Deputies say the boys' mother was at work while Heigl was baby-sitting.

Investigators had not yet determined the cause of the fire.

[Associated Press]

Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.