Mother, 2 Children Die In Apartment Complex Fire

TOWN N' COUNTRY, FL -- A mother and her two children are dead following a fire that swept through a Town N' Country apartment complex in the early-morning hours on Wednesday.

Hillsborough County Fire Rescue crews were called to the two-alarm fire at 3:22 a.m. at the Captiva Club Apartments, 4401 Club Captiva Drive.

The fire started in a second-floor apartment and spread quickly through a shared attic to seven other units, according to fire rescue. It took fire crews about 45 minutes to get it under control.

"Tragically, a family has perished in this fire," said Hillsborough County Chad Chronister during a news conference.

The mother made it outside but, when she realized her 10- and 5-year-old children were still inside, she went back into the burning building to save them. None made it out.

"This became quickly an extremely active scene," said Chronister. "That's why I can't stress enough that the actions of these firefighters and deputy sheriffs were nothing short of heroic to put their lives at risk to rescue as many people as they did."

Ten adults and two children were left homeless. The Red Cross is on the scene providing assistance.

The names of the mother and her children are not being released until their family has been notified.

The fire marshal's office is trying to determine the cause of the fire.