Fire crews find body in debris after house burns
A body was found under the collapsed roof of a house at 11905 W. 20th Ave.
LAKEWOOD – Crews found a body in the collapsed debris of a house fire and investigators were on the scene in northwest Lakewood trying to determine the cause of the fire late Wednesday.
The body was found under a section of collapsed roof about as fire fighters and investigators sifted through the debris about 25 minutes after the fire was put out, said Cindy Matthews, West Metro Fire District spokeswoman.
No information about the victim’s identity, gender or age was available. The body remained inside the house late Wednesday afternoon.
“Because of the way things had burned, it was a very meticulous investigation,” Matthews said. “It was painstakingly slow but thorough.”
Neighbors said they didn’t think anyone was home when the fire broke out about 10:30 p.m. Tuesday.
A number of nearby residents called 911 to report the fire and some reported that they heard a loud blast immediately before they saw the flames leaping above the rooftop of the house at 11906 W. 20th Ave.
Matthews said the flames were visible from Fire Station 5 on W. 20th Avenue west of Youngfield as fire crews headed for the scene.
“The thing about night fire is they often burn undetected initially and then it’s when they make it outside that people notice,” Matthews said.
Matthews said investigators are checking neighbor’s reports of a blast.
“Neighbors reporting hearing several explosions or one big one. The accounts kind of vary, but we cannot confirm that there was an explosion or not at this point,” she said. “Sometimes what people hear are aerosol cans, tires, paint cans, things like that, which will explode when they heat up.”
Police also were securing the scene, which Lakewood Police spokesman Steve Davis said is routine.
“We are pretty much in a support role right now for West Metro Fire investigators,” Davis said. “If at some point it looks like it was criminal in nature, we’ll get more involved.”
Davis said police officers had been dispatched to the home in the past on domestic violence and restraining order violation calls.
When West Metro fire fighters arrived on the scene late Tuesday, the fire already was intense and emitting heavy smoke. About 25 fire fighters battled the blaze for about 30 minutes before it was extinguished.
Fire fighters rescued two dogs from the burning home. One was taken to Wheat Ridge Animal Hospital and is expected to survive. The other dog is staying with neighbors.
