It happened in the Spout Springs community. Harnett County Sheriff's officials say 24-year-old mother, Echo Simmons, lived at the home with her three young children.
Investigators say the fire started around 11:30 p.m. Thursday when their mother left the home to take her mother home less than two-miles down the street. The children were six-years-old, three-years-old and a 20-months-old.
A neighbor spotted the fire just as the mother returned. Six-year-old Janaya Squires was standing outside. By the time fire fighters arrived at the scene the home was engulfed in flames. Ariana Squires-Simmons, 3, and 20-month-old Kaliyah Simmons died in the blaze.
The exact cause of the fire is still under investigation.
