Early morning Owensboro fire leaves one dead

OWENSBORO, Ky. (WEHT) — A person in Owensboro has died after an early morning explosion and house fire on Holmes Drive. Fire officials say they found the homeowner dead inside.

Neighbors tell me the entire street stepped out as firefighters worked to quickly put out the fire. Neighbors say it was an explosion so strong pieces of glass landed on surrounding rooftops and driveways.

“It was it was very unusual. I mean, we have a very quiet neighborhood…to see your next door neighbor’s house on fire is quite terrifying,” says Carolyn Hayman, a next-door neighbor.

The Owensboro Fire Department was sent to the 300 block of Holmes Drive a little after 3 a.m. Neighbors were asked to evacuate their homes for safety reasons.

Officials say one person was found dead inside.

“My bedroom is in the back of the house. So [my son] had to come and wake me up. I didn’t know anything was going on,” says Hayman.

“My dad heard the boom, and then he saw red on the wall of the house. He looked up, and all I heard him say was fire. Next thing I know, over half the house was woken up,” says Elizabeth Cox, a neighbor.

Cox says the heat from the house fire could be felt several streets over, and she felt it as soon as she opened her front door.

She says firefighter’s were still at the home several hours later.

“It was through the roof. Part of the tree was on fire. Luckily, none of the neighbors had any problems,” says Cox.

“No damage to my house at all. It was taken care of. The fire trucks were here quite fast,” says Hayman.

Investigators are working to determine the cause of the fire and are asking for prayers for the victim’s family impacted by this fire. Neighbors say a dog also passed in the fire.

“It’s just sad when you lose a neighbor. I’ve lived here 60 years,” says Hayman.

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