Three children, ages 2, 4, and 6, were pulled from a burning South Carolina home on Monday night after firefighters forced their way inside and found them surrounded by heavy smoke and flames — and not a single adult in sight.
Officers with the Columbia Police Department arrived at a residence on Floran Street around 9:30 p.m. after reports of smoke coming from the home. Firefighters discovered the three young children in and near the bedrooms as the fire blazed through the front section of the house. All three were rushed out and treated for severe burn injuries before being transferred to Augusta Burn Center in Georgia, where they remained in critical but stable condition as of Tuesday evening.
What investigators uncovered next was deeply disturbing. The children had reportedly been left alone for at least a week. The home was described as “deplorable,” with Columbia Fire Chief Aubrey D. Jenkins saying there were “big roaches — an army of roaches” crawling all over the kids. The youngest child was severely malnourished, and one of the children had insects found inside her diaper.
Their mother, Zana Oden, 28, was located at an apartment roughly a mile away — and when officers moved in to arrest her, she hid inside a closet. She was taken into custody and is being held on $300,000 bond. The father of one of the children, Malik Locke, 21, is also in custody on $200,000 bond. Both face three counts of neglect by a legal custodian.
Prosecutors allege that Oden saw police at the burning home, fled, and never contacted law enforcement or family. Authorities say Locke was also aware the house was on fire and allegedly warned Oden about the police presence.
“Even after knowing what had happened here, she still did not contact law enforcement,” said Columbia Deputy Police Chief Melron Kelly.
Additional charges may be forthcoming for both parents.
