Fatal Fire Under Investigation

A 29-year-old man lost his life Thursday morning in a Zanesville house fire.

Zanesville Fire Department was called to the scene around 5:45a.m. Thursday morning for a fire at 1034 Woodlawn Avenue. When crews arrived the home was fully engulfed and some family members were out of the home.

They were treated by Community Ambulance and were transported to the hospital to be evaluated.

The family’s dog was also rescued and saved by firefighters. The body of the deceased male was found in a front bedroom.

“It’s just important this time of year how devastating fire can be. We have a family that lost everything. Not just a family member, but we’re around Christmas. It’s a time of hope It’s supposed to be a time of joy and it’s just very devastating,” said Zanesville Fire Chief Jeff Bell.

The State Fire Marshal and Zanesville Fire Department are investigating the cause of the fire. An autopsy will be conducted.

“At this point it’s just under investigation. We do not know. We know this time of year we see an increase in fires and a lot of the times it is because it’s cold, heating devices are something that we look at as a cause, but we won’t know until the investigations over,” said Chief Bell.

Chief Bell encourages everyone to check their smoke detectors to make sure they’re working properly.