A Grayson man died in a mobile home fire this morning.
State Fire Marshal deputies were called to the 1600 block of Waterbird Road in the Caldwell Parish town at about 9 a.m. Firefighters had discovered the body of who is believed to be the 55-year-old male homeowner inside. Official identification and cause of death are pending an autopsy by the Caldwell Parish Coroner’s Office.
Investigators have determined a space heater placed too close to combustibles was the cause of this fire. This home did not have working smoke alarms.
This is the tenth fatal fire across Louisiana in December claiming the lives of 12 individuals. State Fire Marshal H. “Butch” Browning continues to stress the importance of home fire safety headed into the new year as 2019 ends on such a tragic note.
“It’s so unfortunate to see this continued loss of life when simple fire safety practices, especially having working smoke alarms in a home, likely could have made a significant difference in not only whether these fires would have occurred, but also whether these victims could have survived.”
The cause of this latest fire calls for a reminder about safe home-heating tips including keeping heating devices 3-5 feet away from combustibles, plugging those devices directly into wall outlets and avoiding the use of stoves and/or ovens as heating sources. The SFM would also like to encourage everyone to look around your homes, and the homes of your elderly relatives and neighbors, to identify potential fire hazards and address those hazards sooner rather than later. Those hazards include overloaded power sources, cluttered cooking environments and combustible items too close to devices susceptible to overheating. And of course, when faced with a fire emergency, “Get Out and Stay Out.”
The SFM’s Operation Save-A-Life partners with local fire departments and districts to install smoke alarms for families that need them. You can find more information on the program on our website lasfm.org.
