Five children perished in a fire at their St. Louis apartment overnight. Their mom had left to pick up someone from work when the blaze began early Friday morning, and made multiple attempts to save her children in the apartment when she returned, fire officials said. The kids were ages 2 to 9. “The guys are taking it pretty hard,” Assistant Fire Chief George McClellan said. “They’re kids. It’s tough. It’s tough,” he added. It’s unclear how the fire was sparked.