A man was held on $25,000 bond Thursday after a fire broke out in a Cutler Bay home injuring two children who had been left there alone, authorities said.
Judge Jorge Rodriguez-Chomat also ordered Andrew Sepulveda, 31, to stay away from the two children. Sepulveda was arrested Wednesday and faces two counts of child neglect with great bodily harm. The name of his attorney wasn't immediately known.
The arrest affidavit said Sepulveda locked the doors when he left the children at 10241 Martinique Drive, which prevented them from escaping the fire.
The fire was reported just before 1 p.m. Wednesday at the home. A 6-year-old girl and 4-year-old boy were pulled from the fire in cardiac arrest, then they were revived, authorities said.
Miami-Dade Fire Rescue spokesman Lt. Arnold Piedrahita Jr. said firefighters worked feverishly to establish heartbeats in the two siblings, who were overcome with smoke, unconscious and unresponsive.
“Both children were found in cardiac arrest. They were resuscitated, luckily, by firefighters," Piedrahita said.
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The siblings were airlifted to Jackson Memorial Hospital's Ryder Trauma Center. They were in serious condition and being treated for smoke inhalation, authorities said.
The children were not in the room that was on fire, according to fire officials. The blaze was extinguished.
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Sepulveda, who also lives at the home, told police he was caring for the children when he left them alone and went to the store, the affidavit said.
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When he returned the home was engulfed in flames, and Sepulveda told authorities that the children were inside, the affidavit said.
Their mother was at work when the fire happened, their uncle Moreese Moise said.
