Blaze kills 3 boys, seriously hurts grandmother

updated 12:19 p.m. ET Nov. 4, 2008

HARTLAND, N.Y. - A house fire has killed three young boys and seriously injured their grandmother, officials said.

The blaze was reported late Monday in Hartland, a rural town 25 miles northeast of Buffalo, and firefighters said the house was engulfed in flames when they arrived.

Firefighters found the bodies of the three boys — ages 5, 6 and 8 — inside the house.

The Niagara County sheriff's department said the boys' grandmother, 59-year-old Leona Heigl, was taken to Erie County Medical Center in Buffalo for treatment of smoke inhalation.

Deputies said the boys' mother was at work while Heigl was baby-sitting.

Investigators had not yet determined the cause of the fire.

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