Anchorage mother, 2 young children were victims in Fairview townhouse fire

An Anchorage mother and her two young children were the victims of a fatal house fire in Anchorage's Fairview neighborhood early Friday, according to an online fundraiser for the family.

The victims were identified in the posting as Amy Miller, 31, and her children Isaiah and Lily.

The Anchorage Fire Department is still investigating the cause of the fire, which burned the East 17th Avenue townhouse that Miller and her children lived in and damaged surrounding homes, displacing 17 people.

On Monday, snow fell on a collection of  flowers and stuffed animals near the front door of the townhouse. Plywood had been placed over a burned section of the home.

Fire marshal Cleo Hill said the department had not officially released the victims' identities as of Monday afternoon.

The fundraising page described Miller as a "wonderful daughter, mother, sister and friend to everyone she met" who "loved her family fiercely."

The page had been shared more than 4,000 times on Facebook and had raised nearly $16,000 by Monday.

The organizer wrote that funds would be used to help pay for funeral expenses and to bring Miller's family to Alaska for a memorial.

Relatives of Miller could not be reached Monday.

The Anchorage School District said Isaiah was a kindergarten student at Fairview Elementary School.

"He was a sweet child that we all adore," Fairview Elementary School Principal Dianne Orr said Monday. "He loved school and had many friends. We will miss him dearly. Isaiah and his mother will be in our hearts forever."

Years ago, Amy Miller worked as a server at Midnight Sun Brewing Company in South Anchorage, said brewery co-founder and owner Barb Miller. The two are not related.

Miller was pregnant at the time and was "beautiful, strong and positive," her former boss said.

"She was just a lovely spirit."

More recently, the two had kept touch via social media.

"Amy was a really good mom," she said. "Very attention-focused on her kids."

Investigators have not said whether the house had working smoke detectors, but Miller wonders.

She plans to raise money to make sure all homes have working smoke alarms.

"I think this was preventable," she said.