Dad of 3 ‘Panicked’ and Left His Kids Inside Burning Apartment to Try and Get Help. He Was the Fire’s Sole Survivor

Wisconsin father Joshua Kannin told police he panicked when he realized his home was on fire and ran out to get help while his three children were still inside, according to a search warrant. He survived — and now their mother is asking why he left the kids behind.

Jourdan Feasby says she spent Thanksgiving morning with her three children — Rylee, 10, Connor, 9, and Alena, 7 — before dropping them off at their dad’s two-story apartment. Just a few hours later, she learned that her sons had died in a fire and her daughter had been rushed to the hospital.

While sitting in the hospital with Alena, who later died from her injuries, Feasby says she turned to Kannin and asked, “You wouldn’t grab the kids first?”

She recalls thinking, “Things weren’t adding up.”

Kannin told investigators that around 9:00 p.m. on Nov. 27, Rylee and Connor went to bed in their shared second-floor bedroom. He said he went to sleep about an hour later, while his daughter was awake in the room.

According to a search warrant, Kannin said that when he woke up a short time later — authorities responded to the fire just before 11:00 p.m. — his eyes “felt cloudy.” He told police that when he went downstairs, he saw “a little fire on the kitchen floor.”

Investigators wrote that Kannin said he panicked, walked out the front door, and thought, “I have to get help.”

As he banged on a neighbor’s door and screamed for help, Kannin said he shouted for his children to come downstairs, according to the warrant.

“I opened the door [to my apartment] and I heard my kids. I tried to go back in, but smoke just came at me and I couldn’t see. I barely got two steps in and I had to turn back around,” he told police. “When I opened the door, it made it even worse.”

Kannin also told authorities that before going to bed, he had smoked a cigarette in the kitchen by the sink, but believed he had put it out before he went upstairs.

When first responders arrived, they found two children believed to be deceased — later identified as Rylee and Connor — and another child who was severely burned.

Feasby says the boys were found in the kitchen/dining room area of the apartment.

Alena, described in reports as being found either in the second-floor bedroom or near the stairwell, was taken to a nearby hospital, where she died from her injuries.

Kannin was also transported to a hospital and treated for smoke inhalation. Feasby says he was released the following morning.

In connection with the search warrant, the Kenosha Police Department later issued a clarification about the status of the investigation.

The warrant listed arson and potential homicide as possible offenses being examined. Under Wisconsin law, investigators must outline potential criminal charges when applying for a search warrant to establish probable cause.

The warrant made public was drafted on the night of the fire after a black Samsung cell phone belonging to Kannin was recovered at the scene. The phone was searched under the warrant, and investigators say that search did not uncover any evidence of criminal activity related to the fire.

“As the investigation progresses, in conjunction with the Kenosha Fire Department, they will continue to methodically rule out all possible causes of the fire,” KPD spokesman Lt. Joshua Hecker said. “This is a complex and evolving case, and we remain committed to a thorough, impartial, and evidence-driven investigation.”

Funeral services for the three siblings were held on Friday. Feasby spoke about her children during the service. Kannin attended, she says, but did not address those who gathered to mourn. A GoFundMe has been set up to help cover the funeral expenses.

Officials had no additional update on the investigation when reached for comment on Monday, Dec. 8.