Three people died after a house fire on Sunday in Madison County, and investigators say the blaze began with multiple explosions inside the home in the 8000 block of West Kirsch Road.
The Madison County Sheriff’s Office identified the victims as Madeleine Maxeiner, 18, Ayden Hendrickson, 19, and Paisley Nishwitz, 12. All three died from smoke inhalation, according to preliminary findings, while one other person was taken to the hospital with significant burn injuries and several others escaped the burning home.
Troy Fire Chief said crews got the call around 11:20 p.m. Sunday for a house fire explosion at the same address, and a bomb squad was later called in to investigate. The sheriff’s office said its initial investigation found multiple explosions caused the fire and the deaths, and that the first blast was tied to the mishandling of commercial-grade energetic material.
That finding makes the case far more than a routine residential fire. The presence of explosions forced investigators to bring in bomb specialists, and it also explains why the scene in the 8000 block of West Kirsch Road was handled as both a fatal fire and a possible explosive materials incident.
The sheriff’s office initially identified Maxeiner as Madeleine I. Cissell before correcting her name. The question now is not whether the fire was accidental — investigators have already said the first explosion came from mishandled energetic material — but what exactly was in the home and how it was being handled before the blast that killed three people.
