KELSO, Wash. — An elderly woman is dead after a house fire in Kelso early Friday morning.
Just before 6 a.m., police responded to a house fire in the 200 block of South 9th Avenue. When they arrived, house had flames visible from the second story, with smoke from the front door. Police were able to rescue an elderly man with disabilities and was in the living room on the couch. Fire crews activated a second alarm, as other residents were inside.
Though other residents that were sleeping upstairs were able to escape before first responders arrived, an elderly woman was found dead just outside her bedroom in the back of the house, according to Cowlitz 2 Fire & Rescue. She has not been identified.
Firefighters from Cowlitz 2 Fire & Rescue and Longview Fire departments, using multiple hose lines, were able to have the fire under control at 6:21 a.m., then fully extinguished at 8 a.m.
The American Red Cross is helping the residents who were displaced. They do not have injuries or smoke inhalation.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
