NORTH MANKATO, MINN. – A 12-year-old girl has died after a house fire, the North Mankato Fire Department said Monday.
Autumn Paulson died from injuries she sustained in the fire on Friday morning, Fire Chief James Zwaschka said in a statement.
Her mother, Stefanie Scharbach, 41, was also home and injured in the blaze. She was treated for smoke inhalation and has been released from the hospital, Zwaschka said.
Autumn was a student at Dakota Meadows Middle School. Mankato Area Public Schools is providing additional mental health resources, including school counselors, psychologists and social workers, a statement from the school district said.
First responders arrived at the house fire at 524 Lyndale Ave. around 5:26 a.m. on Friday. When they arrived, they saw heavy flames and smoke coming from the second story of the house, a statement at the time.
They evacuated four others from the house with no injuries. They evacuated Scharbach and Autumn after entering the home, and both had severe burns.
The fire remains under investigation by the State Fire Marshal’s Office and the North Mankato fire and police departments.
Late last month, two children died and their mother was injured in a duplex fire in Mankato’s Lincoln Park neighborhood. Another child and a man escaped without injury, as did the residents of the first floor. The mother, Deanna Lenzen, is at “home and recovering,” according to an online fundraiser.
Last week, eight members of the Phi Kappa Psi college fraternity house in Mankato had to evacuate their chapter house as they slept because of a suspected arson fire. Mitchell John Thompson, 32, was charged with first-degree arson, a felony, in connection with the fire.
Mankato will host a fire prevention open house on Oct. 5. The event will focus on how to safely use lithium-ion batteries, which are associated with significant fire risk.