<p>Two young sisters and their teenage uncle died when a fire tore through their Coney Island apartment, authorities said.</p><p>Jahgiria Sheffer, 9, and Jahnae O'Pharrow, 3, along with their uncle, Ricardo Clarke, 16, were taken to Coney Island Hospital, where they were pronounced dead Wednesday night, police and fire officials said. They all lived together in the six-floor apartment with the girls' mother.</p><p>The blaze at the 20-story Ocean Towers complex in Brooklyn erupted at 9:30 p.m. Wednesday and was mostly contained to the one apartment, the Fire Department said. The cause was not immediately known.</p><p>The children's aunt, Shinika Bagley, who lives in Georgia, said in a telephone interview that she learned of the children's death early Thursday from another sister who lives in Coney Island.</p><p>That sister, Sheena Bagley, 24, told her that she had not heard from their other sister, Stephanie Sheffer, 27 _ the girls' mother _ since the fire.</p><p>Fire officials said they had no immediate information about the mother's whereabouts.</p><p>Sheena "heard that she (Stephanie) was outside, screaming 'Help! Help!'" said Shinika Bagley, who moved to Atlanta from Brooklyn six years ago.</p><p>Bagley said she last saw her sister Stephanie and the three children in August, when she visited them in Coney Island.</p><p>She said Clarke was Stephanie's brother and a promising basketball player. He lived with her sister and her daughters.</p><p>Fire Department spokesman Ken Bohan said 138 firefighters battled the three-alarm blaze, which was brought under control at 10:45 p.m. At least seven firefighters suffered minor injuries, he said.</p><p>Annie Lazare, a spokeswoman for the Red Cross, said the agency was finding shelter for five families _ six adults and two children _ whose apartments had to be evacuated, likely due to smoke and water damage.</p><p>The fire was not considered suspicious, Bohan said.</p><p>___</p><p>Associated Press Writer Ula Ilnytzky contributed to this report.</p>
