A fast-burning fire engulfed a small house on West Twisp Avenue last Saturday night (Jan. 30). Firefighters later located a body inside the house. The victim had not been officially identified as of early this week.
One person was killed in this house fire.
Home destroyed; victim’s identity not officially confirmed
By Marcy Stamper
One person died in a fire in Twisp on Saturday night (Jan. 30) that destroyed a small house on West Twisp Avenue, just west of Highway 20. The individual hadn’t been officially identified as of Tuesday (Feb. 2), pending autopsy results.
Firefighters responded to a call around 9:30 p.m. of a house already fully engulfed in flames, Okanogan County Fire District Chief Cody Acord said.
About 15 firefighters from Twisp, Winthrop and Mazama were successful in keeping the fire from spreading to a garage on the property and to neighboring properties, including the Twisp River Suites, Acord said.
Firefighters located the body around 10:30 p.m., Twisp Police Chief Paul Budrow said.
Okanogan County Coroner Dave Rodriguez is conducting an autopsy and awaiting confirmation of identity through dental records or DNA. Confirmation through dental records would most likely be completed this week, but a DNA analysis takes longer, Rodriguez said.
The coroner’s office has notified the family of the individual who lived in the house but have made no definitive identification, Rodriguez said Monday.
Rodriguez will also determine the cause of death, and whether the death occurred before the fire started or as a result of the fire.
Firefighters left at 2:30 a.m. while an officer from the Twisp Police Department stayed overnight to guard the scene, Acord said.
Okanogan County Sheriff’s Detective Kreg Sloan and Budrow conducted a fire investigation on Monday. The investigation will seek to determine the cause of the fire and where it started, Budrow said.
By state law, because of the fatality, the incident was also reported to the state fire marshal on Saturday night, Budrow said.
A fast-burning fire engulfed a small house on West Twisp Avenue last Saturday night (Jan. 30). Firefighters later located a body inside the house. The victim had not been officially identified as of early this week.
