TN TN - Chloie Leverette, 9, & Gage Daniel, 7, Unionville, 23 Sept 2012

[summerthyme]

One thing that seems odd - googling around for local news stories on this, there seem to be very few comments. Usually if a tragic fire or something happens, there are always neighbors and friends weighing in. This time, nothing. It makes me wonder if the grandparents were new to the area, or perhaps kept to themselves and weren't well known?

That could back up the "survivalist" speculation - and if they weren't friendly with the neighbors, that could also be a reason that the kids wouldn't go to them for help if they escaped the fire.

I know the family going back 60 years. Leon's parents and some of the siblings (especially Mary Ester Lamb) all my life. The father was an alcoholic, so the Mother had to work very hard to work and raise the kids. They were a close knit family but did not have friends per se. I doubt they are into survivalist, the community is super small, only 200 population, and it's not the neighborly kind of community.

When I lived there, our family had a lot of friends, but not really in that small community, but at our church (Neighboring community) and in the surrounding towns. The exception was we were with our family all time from Rover, and I feel this family was just close knit and stayed with family. My husband's family from the county and small town next door is the exact same way.

The terrain of Rover is just country, but Kingdom Road has a good deal of traffic and it's very close to two highways at either end of it. One goes to either Nashville or Shelbyville, and the one at the other end can go to Murfreesboro or to Shelbyville. The community is centrally located to three towns, Nashville, Murfreesboro and Shelbyville, so you are in the country, but you don't feel as if you are in the sticks.

My hubby looked up SO's in the area, and there are four, but he did not feel as if any of those were that strong. I am sure LE investigated those or will.

He thinks they are campers and I know Leon's Dad was an avid hunter and owned bird dogs. That might explain the propane tanks.

I have not heard any inside info. We are still dealing with the small kitchen fire we had the same day and still having to remediate, so I do not know as much as most of you probably, but I could shed a little light about the community and the type of people they "may" be socially based on what I knew of that for many years.

FOX news is doing a report right now.

Oh that is the first time I have seen Mary Ester. My aunt told me she is the one going on TV. That broke my heart. When Mary Ester McClaren married and became a lamb, they rented a little apartment inside of my great grandmother's house (she was old and didn't want to be alone in the house), and that was next door to me when I was about six, and they had their first baby boy there. I was up to my great grandmother's all the time, and Mary Ester Lamb is a very sweet person, and it's broke my heart seeing her. I haven't seen her in a long time, but she's looks much the same and I see her broken heart in her face.

 

[carbuff]

Thank you for sharing all that information, summerthyme. It must be very painful for you watching people you know going through this.

 

[debirlfan]

If they were scrounging tanks for recycling... Apparently they've using these tanks to hold other chemicals used in the manufacture of meth. The chemical corrodes the tank and fittings, and leaves staining that will usually prevent them from being returned/refilled by propane dealers.

If someone threw out a used meth tank, and they found it and took it - anything in it could definitely leak.

 

[Tawny]

I keep checking into this thread hoping for a sighting or news or something. So sad.

 

[nursebeeme]

hope we hear some more news today on where these kids could be!

 

[GrainneDhu]

It still just bugs me that 20 tanks were stored in the house?
Who keeps 20 propane tanks, let alone stores them in their house?

If you go to refill them, they are kept outdoors of the store and for a very good reason.
Safety.

Plus, you are all correct, they are very expensive!

Baffling...

My parents did when my brother was making money in high school by scavenging them. He knew to examine the tanks and make sure the valve was still good and the tank was still in good (refillable) condition.

He'd wait until he had 20-30 tanks to take in all at once because my parents made him pay the tax deduction rate for using their van (it was something like $0.05/mile back then). Not because they were cheap but because they wanted him to have a real life experience in entrepreneurship.

No kidding, that usually only took two home football games to accumulate. Totally amazing. I would have thought people would take them home again because they'd already taken them *to* the game. Or maybe people packed up and for some reason forgot their tank. Out of a crowd of 50,000 people coming into town to watch the game, I suppose it's not outrageous that 10 or 12 of them would simply forget their tank.

 

[OceanEyes]

:bump:


Any news on Gage and Chloie?

 

[KaylynnCouture]

Latest update: BEDFORD COUNTY, Tenn. – Authorities continue to follow up leads more than a week after a fatal fire in Bedford County.

Snipped: http://www.newschannel5.com/story/19686517/authorities-follow-leads-in-case-of-missing-children

 

[GateKeeper]

http://www.newschannel5.com/story/19686517/authorities-follow-leads-in-case-of-missing-children

Authorities Follow Leads In Case Of Missing Children

Helm said the TBI does not have any direct evidence that the children are victims of foul play. She said there are no persons of interest in the case and that investigators are following all leads, but would not elaborate.

Christopher Garrett, a spokesman for the State Fire Marshal's office, said he did not have any information on a cause of the fire.

 

[GateKeeper]

Ohhhh, and TAWNY...your "gerbil..hamster thingy" is totally freakin me out...

:crazy:

 

[GateKeeper]

OOOPS,sorry KC..I see you already posted the channel5 article.


I was distracted byTawnys hamster.

 

[fraudqueen]

Two more missing children with no answers....it's making me crazy.

 

[GrainneDhu]

From this article:

http://www.newschannel5.com/story/1...play-not-suspected-in-childrens-disappearance

The TBI says they don't believe either of the children's parents are suspects in their disappearance.

and

This story has taken many twists and turns over the last six days, and now national media outlets are traveling to Tennessee to cover the story.

And from this article:

http://www.newschannel5.com/story/19686517/authorities-follow-leads-in-case-of-missing-children

Molly was the children's maternal grandmother, Leon was their step-grandfather.

I hope the first article I quoted is true and that there will shortly be more national news coverage. I just can't believe, with all the processing of the debris, that the children died in the fire and left no remains. They are out there somewhere and national attention is their best (and maybe only) hope.

That poor family, this must be such a horrible time for them. Bad enough to lose so many loved ones in a fire but then to discover that the children weren't there is just terrible.

 

[summer_breeze]

http://www.wmctv.com/story/19686047/relative-of-missing-children-i-think-somethings-very-fishy

Posted: Oct 01, 2012 2:23 PM EDT
Updated: Oct 02, 2012 6:37 AM EDT

(WMC-TV) – It has been more than one week since fire destroyed a Tennessee home, killing two people. But after sifting through ashes and debris, investigators have still found no sign of 9-year-old Chloie Leverette and 7-year-old Gage Daniel.

 

[Wendy101]

http://www.fireengineering.com/news...ound-with-step-grandparents-in-burned-fa.html

Sorry if this has already been posted. I thought it had alot of good info.

SO these we step-Grandparents? Where and who are the parents? Why do the children have two different last name? Are they siblings? Cousins?

 

[GrainneDhu]

SO these we step-Grandparents? Where and who are the parents? Why do the children have two different last name? Are they siblings? Cousins?

As I understand it, Chloie and Gage are siblings with different fathers. Chloie's father is dead and Gage's father is still alive (and talking to the media).

Their mother is Molli McClaran's biological daughter and Leon McClaran's stepdaughter.

According to this article:

http://www.newschannel5.com/story/19621881/grandparents-two-grandchildren-killed-in-house-fire

Gage had special needs but the article did not specific what those were.

 

[seattlechiquita]

This case is just way too strange. I can't believe there are NO leads, none at all?

 

[Crimson clover]

Chloie Leverette, 9, and Gage Daniel, 7, were last seen by a neighbor Sunday evening at their grandparents' home on Kingdom Road in Unionville. About three hours later the home was destroyed by fire

I have been wondering...in what fashion did the neighbor 'see' the children? Were they out playing in the yard...riding the gator...? Has this been noted?...

Also, were grandpa and grandma seen along with Chloie & Gage?

Still thinkin and praying for these two little ones.

 

[LittleMissContrary]

Chloie Leverette, 9, and Gage Daniel, 7, were last seen by a neighbor Sunday evening at their grandparents' home on Kingdom Road in Unionville. About three hours later the home was destroyed by fire

I have been wondering...in what fashion did the neighbor 'see' the children? Were they out playing in the yard...riding the gator...? Has this been noted?...

Also, were grandpa and grandma seen along with Chloie & Gage?

Still thinkin and praying for these two little ones.

Now I am confused. I thought they initially said one child had been at school that day. Guess that information was not accurate.

 

[GrainneDhu]

Chloie Leverette, 9, and Gage Daniel, 7, were last seen by a neighbor Sunday evening at their grandparents' home on Kingdom Road in Unionville. About three hours later the home was destroyed by fire

I have been wondering...in what fashion did the neighbor 'see' the children? Were they out playing in the yard...riding the gator...? Has this been noted?...

Also, were grandpa and grandma seen along with Chloie & Gage?

Still thinkin and praying for these two little ones.

I can't find the specific story but one of the stories I read said that the neighbour saw Chloie and Gage outside playing in the yard about 3 hours before the fire. No mention of the grandparents or a Gator, so I'm assuming that those were not seen.

I'm not sure I'd let a 9 year old ride a Gator alone. Tall 10 and 12 year olds start driving vehicles on their own property out here in the country in my state but a larger vehicle is easier and safer to handle than a small one (a Gator is like a souped up all terrain vehicle). So, who knows, Chloie may have been tall enough to operate the Gator but I'd be surprised if they were letting her do so. Even a beat up old stick shift pickup might be too large for her (have to legs long enough to push the clutch to the floor).

Apparently they are continuing to process the fire debris:

http://www.t-g.com/story/1899690.html

Some local officials have said they suspect the children did lose their lives in the intense heat.

Firefighters described the blaze as "unusually hot" and remains of many propane tanks were found within the home's rubble.

Of course, unusually hot also describes many arson fires where a lot of accelerant was used. And I recall one case where the furniture in the home was all secondhand from before flame retardant materials were required; the fire in that case burned extremely hot because the house was full of extremely flammable furniture.

I just don't know and it doesn't sound like anyone else does at this point.