One person is dead following a house fire in the 600 block of West 11th Street in Crowley on Monday night.
Investigators say the fire occurred Just before 8:45 p.m. on Monday, August 19. The Crowley Fire Department responded to a house fire and located the body of a man in one of the home’s bathrooms. Deputies say a female occupant was able to escape the fire unharmed.
The Acadia Parish Coroner's Office is working to identify the victim, but investigators believe he is the 70-year-old tenant of the home.
SFM says that investigators learned from the surviving occupant, who rented the home with the deceased, that the pair were in one of the home’s bedrooms when a noise led them to the living room. There, the two witnessed sparks coming from a window A/C unit.
According to deputies, the woman told investigators that the victim was making an effort to extinguish the fire when she exited the home. She tells deputies that, despite her urging the man to exit, he never exited the house.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation. An assessment of the scene located evidence that the A/C unit was plugged into a power strip that was connected to several extension cords running throughout the home.
