Levesque and Barnes

December 8, 1999
Web posted at: 10:21 a.m. EST (1521 GMT)

WORCESTER, Massachusetts (CNN) -- A homeless couple were charged Tuesday in the deaths of six firefighters in a warehouse blaze started by a candle the couple allegedly knocked over during a fight.

The first two firefighters had gone into the burning brick building to rescue them, but the couple already had escaped after trying unsuccessfully to save their dog and cat.

Thomas S. Levesque, 37, and Julie S. Barnes, 19, pleaded not guilty at their arraignment in Worcester Central District Court on six counts of involuntary manslaughter and were ordered held under $1 million bail pending a court appearance on December 14. They have requested separate attorneys.

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The couple had been living together on the second floor of the abandoned warehouse for several months, said District Attorney John J. Conte.

Conte said Levesque and Barnes were in the building prior to the fire last Friday and apparently got into a quarrel during which a lit candle was knocked over, igniting clothes and spreading to papers.

The couple tried unsuccessfully to extinguish the blaze, Conte said. "They made no attempt to report the fire," he said.

As the blaze swept through the building, the couple tried unsuccessfully to rescue their dog and cat, Conte said. The two spent the night at a friend's house.

Two firefighters entered the building after hearing reports the homeless pair may have been trapped inside. Four more firefighters, using safety lines, then went into the building to try to save their comrades but also were killed.

The deaths of the firemen left 17 children fatherless.

President Clinton is expected to attend a memorial service Thursday in Worcester, joined by thousands of firefighters from around the nation.

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