A 12-year-old girl who was pulled from a burning home in west-end Toronto over the weekend succumbed to her injuries after her father died trying to save her.

"Many men say they will do anything for their children," said an emotional Richard Leftley on Monday afternoon about his friend Ken Einboden. "Well, Ken did. He gave his last breath saving his daughters."

Neighbours told police the father ran out of the house safely carrying his infant daughter Kendra in his arms. After handing her over to a neighbour, he rushed back inside to rescue Britney. He didn't come back out.

Britney was found on the second floor of her smoke-filled North York home next to her 35-year-old father Ken. Authorities say both Ken and Britney were found without vital signs when they were pulled from the fire.

Britney's father succumbed to his injuries Sunday in hospital. Paramedics rushed his daughter to the downtown Hospital for Sick Children, but she passed away over the noon hour.

"God took back one of his angels -- Britney," Leftley told reporters Monday. "She was a great kid, she worked hard at school.

"Yesterday, I lost my best friend," he said about Ken. "Today my kids lost their best friend. This is hard for the mother, and hard for the family."

One little girl said Britney had been her best friend, and that she had never had a best friend like that before. A memorial has developed at the fire scene. One person left a note with a teddy bear saying Britney was now with her dad in a better place.

Leftley described Einboden as the kind of guy who was always there for his family and who would give his friends the shirt off his back to help them out. He said anyone who knew Ken would not be surprised he died trying to save his children.

Trust fund

The family has faced some tragic circumstances lately.

Six months ago, Britney's grandmother died. Around the same time, Ken lost his job and his wife Jackie gave birth to their daughter Kendra. She has been off work on maternity leave.

The couple was renting the home. Leftley said the family did not have renter's insurance. The fire destroyed the family home, leaving mother and baby with only the clothes on their back.

"If anyone out there is able to help out and make a donation, they would greatly appreciate it," he said. "That family has seen enough grief."

A trust fund has been set up for the family. Donations can be made to the RBC branch at Jane Street and Lawrence Avenue, chequing account number 5052394.

The fire broke out in the kitchen of the family's Kemp Square home just before 3 p.m. Sunday.

The children's mother was out of the home running errands when the fire broke out, Toronto Police Staff Sgt. Richard McKeown told ctvtoronto.ca.

Investigators are trying to determine what sparked the blaze.

The home was not equipped with a water sprinkler, according to Toronto Fire Services.

With a report from CTV Toronto's Austin Delaney