COLUMBUS (WCMH) – A man is dead after a fire in southeast Columbus has destroyed a home early Thursday morning.
According to a battalion chief at the scene, a two-story home in the Glenbrook neighborhood sustained extensive damage and a man was missing after a fire began just before 4 a.m. in the 3400 block of Marlin Drive.
Firefighters arrived and were battling the blaze in defensive mode, trying to get the flames contained before spreading. At the time they were unsure if anyone was in the home. Crews learned soon afterward that a woman and her father lived in the home.
The woman was not at home at the time of the fire, but her father was unaccounted for. The man’s car was in the driveway and authorities believed he may have been inside. Crews were able to contain the fire, which caused the main floor and part of the back of the home to collapse.
As of 5:15 crews were still unable to locate anyone inside the home as they searched the bedroom and began efforts on the main floor where the home had collapsed. At 5:28 a.m. the man was located on the first floor and pronounced dead at the scene by the Columbus Division of Fire.
Neighbors Mary Peters and Crystal Green were woken up by the commotion and worried about those inside as firefighters began breaking windows in efforts to battle the blaze.
“I woke up to hearing the popping noises and I come downstairs and I see the back of the house is completely engulfed in flames…. It’s just horrible to watch,” Peters said.
“I’ve just been calling (him), trying to make sure he’s okay, but there’s no answer,” Green said.
Battalion Chief Jeffrey Geitter said at first it was difficult to gain access into the home because of the intensity of the blaze.
“Our crews aggressively attempted to get inside to search for people (but) because of the amount of fire they were limited in where they could get into,” he said. “There is structural damage to the building and so all of that hindered getting inside initially.”
Geitter also said that because the second floor collapsed onto the first floor, it was a challenge to search for the victim, whose identity has yet to be released.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation as crews aim to maintain control of the smoke and sift through major damage inside the home.