10-year-old girl dies in Detroit apartment fire

DETROIT (WJBK) - A child dies in an apartment fire on Detroit's west side Thursday.

Family members are devastated with the sudden death of 10-year-old Ania Payne, killed in a fire. The fire started in the apartment where she lived.

"She's going to be truly missed," said John Emerson, the girl's uncle. "Not being able to wake up and see her smile is going to hurt a lot."

The girl was alone in the apartment with a three year old boy when the fire broke out around 7 p.m. Thursday on the corner of Burt Road and W. Chicago. The boy was able to escape and run down the hall where relatives lived, calling for help.

"Ran over there and the fire was just rolling out the windows," said Emerson. "We broke out as many windows as we could to try to get in. We went through the front door but the smoke and the fire pushed everything back out."

Firefighters quickly put out the flames but it was too late for Ania.

"She had a whole future ahead of her," Emerson said. "Straight-A student. Not one bad report card ever came home from her. She's truly going to be missed."

The family said that just a couple of days ago, they were celebrating Ania's birthday. Arson investigators are on the scene still trying to find out what caused the fire, we will let you know when we learn more.