A five-year-old child was killed in an overnight house fire.

The fire started just before midnight Thursday at a home in the 1500 block of Sharon Drive in Mobile.

Mobile Fire-Rescue responded and could see flames coming from the home when they arrived. Two boys, ages 12 and five, were home alone at the time. The 12-year-old boy was able to escape the fire after a smoke alarm awakened him. However, he was unable to get his little brother out of the house due to the intense fire.

Firefighters located the five-year-old and transported him to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

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