Neighbors ID Resident Killed In Mid-City House Fire As Elderly Widower
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — Firefighters reportedly found a person dead inside a house Sunday where they had just put out a blaze.
The fire was reported at 4:51 p.m. at 1568 South Point View Street, in the Mid-City area, L.A. Fire Department spokesperson Shawn Lenske said.
Crews responding to the scene said they saw smoke coming from the attic.
It took 86 firefighters a half hour to knock down the flames.
They found the victim's body as they searched the home after the resident apparently succumbed to heat and smoke, LAFD Capt. Jaime Moore said at the scene.
Moore said it was the 18th fire-related death in L.A. this year.
Neighbors said a man in his 70s lived there and his wife recently died from cancer, according to a news photographer at the scene.
Two pet dogs and a bird also were killed in the blaze, Moore said.
Firefighters passed out free smoke detectors in the neighborhood after the blaze was out.
It was unclear if there was a working alarm in the house.
Investigators are trying to determine what caused the fire.
(©2014 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services contributed to this report.)
