Lawrence - For the second time in less than a week, a mother and child were found dead inside an apartment that was set on fire.
Neighbors called for help when they smelled smoke at the Hunt Club Apartments, near 56th Street and I-465. Residents reported the fire at 6:32 Sunday night.
Lawrence Police detectives removed evidence from the apartment Monday afternoon, trying to determine why someone started the fire. The bodies of 25-year-old Traci Shannon and her 10-month-old daughter Juliana were found in separate bedrooms Sunday night. Their cause of death has not been confirmed.
One neighbor said thick black smoke covered the windows.
"She tried to knock on the door. She told our dispatch that she heard the baby crying from within. Our units got here at 6:40, which is six minutes later, and when firefighters got here they found the baby rather quickly and brought it outside and the baby was deceased," said Dino Batalis, Lawrence Fire Department.
Both Traci Shannon and her daughter were pronounced dead at the scene not long after firefighters arrived.
"Once the fire department was here and opened the door and were going in, then I saw smoke coming out, but never saw flames," said resident Elisa Stanfill.
Other residents said the same. They didn't realize there had been a fatal fire at the apartment complex until they heard the sirens and saw the flashing lights.
"I did not see fire, just a little smoke and it looked like it was contained," said resident Karen Mitchell.
"When they pulled out, I saw them bring the baby out and the baby wasn't moving," said another resident, Angel Martin.
Investigators say the fire was contained just to Shannon's apartment unit. They're calling it suspicious because they say the origin was in two separate locations within the apartment.
"At this point we don't believe this was a random act. Detectives are obviously still investigating and will come to some type of conclusion fairly soon," said Dep. Chief Gary Woodruff, Lawrence Police Department.
Batalis also noted the smoke detector in the main hallway was missing. Had it been in place, several people probably would have heard it.
"Obviously, there's something. I don't understand why they didn't hear it, because that's one thing we do hear, when the smoke detector goes off," said Mitchell.
While few people at the complex actually knew the victims, their deaths weighed heavily.
"My heart goes out to them and prayers to their family," said Martin.
"[Traci Shannon] talked about her [daughter], she had pictures of her. Her daughter was beautiful, and that was her joy," said Linda Williams, a friend.
This story was compiled from reports by Jeremy Brilliant and Mary Milz.
