One person was found dead and a firefighter was injured after a house fire in Ken Caryl this morning.
At 5:54 a.m., firefighters were called to a house at 18 Canyon Cedar Drive, after a neighbor walking their dog called 911 to report smoke and flames coming from the home, said Mark Techmeyer, a spokesman for the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office.
When crews arrived they found a fire in the back corner of the house.
A firefighter was injured after he slipped and hit his head, Techmeyer said. The firefighter, whose name has not been released, had to get a several stitches. He never entered the house.
It appears that the fire started in the back of the house.
Crews were able to isolate the fire to the back corner of the house and extinguish the blaze.
Firefighters later found a body inside the home. The Sheriff’s Department is conducting both a death and arson investigation, Techmeyer said.
The victim has not been identified and no one else was in the home when the fire started.
No other injuries were reported.
Mike Corbin, who lives across the street, said an elderly woman lives in the home with her husband.
Several neighbors attempted to enter the home and alert the woman by knocking on the door.
Corbin, who has lived in the neighborhood for 22 years, ran across the street after neighbors woke him. He then threw a rock through the home’s front window and was able to open the front door, he said.
Heavy smoke prevented Corbin from entering the home.
Corbin said the woman and her husband have lived in the home for more than 20 years.
Laura Speek said the woman, who lives in the house next to her, used to teach at near by Chatfield High School. Speek said she was roused by neighbors shortly before 6 a.m. and and that emergency responders were discouraging anyone from trying to enter the home.
Neighbor Pat Cambell said she has lived in the neighborhood for eight years. When Cambell saw the flames, she thought a tree was on fire.
There was heavy smoke damage throughout the house, Techmeyer said.
About 45 firefighters and 15 trucks responded to the scene. The cause of the fire has not yet been determined.
