Investigators search for cause of Graham fire

GRAHAM — Investigators are probing the debris at a house fire in Graham, looking for the cause of the blaze that killed three girls.

Three sisters — ages 10, 11 and 13 — were trapped in upstairs bedrooms about midnight Saturday when the fire broke out.

Their father and stepmother were downstairs and couldn’t reach them.

Graham Fire and Rescue deputy chief Gary Franz said the father was on a ladder trying to enter a second-floor window when firefighters arrived. Firefighters took over but it was too late.

Franz said smoke alarms in the home were working.

The Tacoma News Tribune newspaper identified the father as 40-year-old Leonard Ballard and the daughters as 13-year-old Katelyn, 11-year-old Emily and 10-year-old Michaela.

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