The latest news from that horrible Christmas day fire in Stamford, Connecticut, comes from the local coroner's office, which announced on Wednesday that all five of the victims died of smoke inhalation. Lomer Johnson, the father of Madonna Badger, who owned the house, was also hit on the back of the head, apparently when he fell through a roof while trying to save his granddaughter, the Associated Press reported Wednesday. Smoke inhalation is the most common cause of death in a house fire. 

For the survivors, the pain continues. Michael Borcina, who is Badger's boyfriend, injured his knee and suffered smoke inhalation while trying to save Badger's children, he told the New York Daily News. "It was a tragedy," he told the Daily News on Wednesday. "It’s really hard." Firefighters broke down during a debriefing of the situation, the AP reported. Thomas Olshanski, a spokesman for the U.S. Fire Administration, said the firefighters would probably take the situation very hard. "Their desire was to get that family out and they were unable to. Totally understandable - raging fire, people trapped inside. Sometimes the challenges are too big and it becomes personal at that point," he told the AP.

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Adam Martin