Neighbors call 911 to report house fire, firefighters find man dead inside
FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. (WTVD) -- A tough day for the Fayetteville Fire Department after firefighters responded to a fire that turned deadly.
The fire was reported around 2:00 a.m. Tuesday on Armstrong Street. Shortly after arriving and battling the intense flames, they found a person dead in the bedroom.
Neighbor Jaleel McLaughlin captured the fire on his cellphone. He says he was at home when the street lights in front of his home went out.
"So I look outside and turn and look. The whole thing was engulfed in flames. It was like, you could see it from the back to the whole house. And then I see this orange light shining on my porch. And when I came outside and the electricity in the wires started sparking."
Fire officials have not released the name of the person they found.
However, McLaughlin and Deborah Galloway say they knew him personally as a friendly neighbor named 'Willie.'
"He was chill. He asked about the kids when we walked by or see how we're doing. "Very nice," Galloway said.
A spokesperson for the fire department tells ABC11 the fire appears to be accidental.
The Armstrong Street fire comes on the heels of a Sunday morning fire on Tammy Street in which an adult and child were hurt.
Stephen Shakeshaft with the Fayetteville Fire Department said, "And the biggest contributing factor is there is no indication there were working smoke alarms in either home."
Those alarms, the department says, could have made a difference in both fires.
Download the ABC11 App now to get weather updates and breaking news
"Early indication is the biggest contributing factor to survivability. So the earlier you're notified and can get out, the smoke doesn't get to you and cause you to succumb to your injuries."
Investigators are still working to figure out where the fire in this home started and why. They stress if you do not have a working smoke alarm and you live in the city call the fire department and they will come to your home and install one for free
