MOUNT LOOKOUT, W.Va. — The victim of a fatal fire in Nicholas County was an elderly woman who lived alone. According to Wilderness Fire Chief Noah Allen, the victim was 79 years of age.
Allen and his crew arrived on the scene Monday afternoon following multiple calls to Nicholas County 9-1-1 to report the blaze at a home on Deitz Road at Mount Lookout.
“We arrived on scene and found the house fully engulfed in flames,” he said. “We pulled hose and started putting the fire out and later we realized there was an elderly female inside.”
But Allen said the flames had too much of a head start to attempt to save the victim.
“By the time we got there, there was no chance of a rescue, the flames were just too much,” he added.
Twenty fire fighters from multiple fire departments helped get the blaze under control. Wilderness, Summersville, Keslers Cross Lanes, Nuttall, and Anstead Fire Departments all had personnel and equipment on the scene.
A cause for the fire is undetermined at this point and is under investigation by the state Fire Marshal’s office. According to Allen the fire appeared to have originated in the kitchen or living room area. The name of the victim has not been released.