Tragedy in Duluth

Three die in house fire

May 4 – Three Duluth residents died when a mid morning fire swept through their Lincoln Park/West End home.  The victims were identified as 32 year old Heather Johnson, her 4 year old son Kaiden and Johnson’s boyfriend, 37 year old Adrian Carter.  Duluth firefighters were called to 226 Piedmont Avenue around 10 a.m. and found heavy smoke throughout the house. All three victims were quickly removed from the triplex and resuscitation efforts began immediately.  Heather Johnson and Adrian Carter were pronounced dead at the scene while Kaiden died while enroute to St. Mary’s Medical Center. According to news reports, a smoke alarm was going off on the second floor of the house.  However, batteries were found in a downstairs smoke detector, but they were disconnected. Damages were estimated at $80,000.  The cause of the fire remains under investigation by the Duluth Police Department and the Duluth Fire Department.