Town of Poughkeepsie officials confirmed at a press conference that three people died in a house fire early Saturday morning.
Two female Marist College students and one male perished in the fire, which took place at 112 Fairview avenue.
Town officials did not release the names of the deceased since not all family members had been notified.
Marist College students lease the rental property where the fire occurred. The residence is located a little more than a mile away from the Marist College campus.
"Our police department responded to a 9-1-1 call of a reported working structure fire at 112 Fairview Avenue at approximately 1:33 [Saturday] morning," Town of Poughkeepsie Police Chief Tom Mauro said.
The Town of Poughkeepsie Police Department was the lead law enforcement agency in a joint investigative effort that also included the fire districts of Fairview, Roosevelt, Hyde Park and Arlington.
"The first arriving unit did try to make an interior attack into the building," Fairview Fire Chief Chris Maeder said. "They were forced back by heat and flames due to the overwhelming involvement of the structure and they had to back out. We were able to get the fire under control within about 90 minutes of arriving on the scene."
The cause of the fire has yet to be determined.
Six female Marist College students lease the property, four of which were present in the home at the time of the fire. In addition to the four residents of the house, three additional guests were present, totaling seven individuals that were in the house when the fire occurred.
Of the seven individuals in the home at the time of the fire, four managed to exit the residence safely.
"We have interviewed four surviving victims of this fire," Mauro said. "Two are residents of the house, renting the home. Two are their male friends or boyfriends."
The students conveyed to Town officials that they went to sleep at around 12 or 12:30 a.m. and there was no issue in the home at that time.
"The four survivors were transported to St. Francis Hospital where they were fortunately treated and released," Morrow said. "They suffered no significant injuries or burns. They were treated for smoke inhalation and minor injuries."
John Gildard, the Director of Safety and Security at Marist College, said that no similar incidents involving Marist College students and fatal fires have occurred in recent years.
The home was demolished early Saturday evening.
"We don't typically knock down buildings after they are involved in a fire," Maeder said. "We made the decision in conjunction with the Town and using an engineer that the structure was not safe."
Many Marist College students rent off-campus residences on Fairview Avenue and nearby Lake Street.
Melissa Generoso, a Marist College senior and 37 Lake Street resident, was an eyewitness to the blaze.
"We were in our house about to go to sleep and my friend came into my room and said, ‘I hear broken glass," Generoso said. "We ran to the end of the driveway and we saw a big cloud of orange smoke. The entire house was on fire."
Vice President and Dean of Student Affairs Deb DiCaprio sent a memorandum out to Marist College students on Saturday evening that offered counseling services to any interested students.
The College is also postponing the Men's basketball game on Sunday and the women's basketball game on Monday night.
Please check www.maristcircle.com for further updates.
is a member of the 
Be the first to comment on this article!