Body found at scene of Kelowna house fire
Police say autopsy will be needed to identify deceased
A dead body was found inside a burned Kelowna home Monday night.
Kelowna RCMP were called to assist the Kelowna Fire Department at a structure fire in the 1200 block of Gaggin Road at 9:36 p.m.
After extinguishing the fire, firefighters searched the interior of the residence and located a body.
The cause of the fire and the death are unknown as the investigation is ongoing, say police, who are working with fire investigators and the BC Coroners Service.
“We are, of course, treating the fire and the death as suspicious until we can prove otherwise,” Cpl. Jesse O’Donaghey told reporters at the scene.
Police are not releasing any information about the dead person, including the gender, because identification is currently “not clear” to investigators, said O’Donaghey.
“We’re going to have to rely on an autopsy likely to identify this individual.”
Earlier that evening, someone inside the residence had a medical emergency, said O’Donaghey.
“I don’t want to speculate, but there was some information that we have received that the individuals or the family that resided here were dealing with a medical emergency yesterday, and I don’t believe that’s related to this, but, again, it’s part of our ongoing investigation.”
O’Donaghey could not confirm the person who had the medical emergency was the same person who died.
Anyone with information is asked to call RCMP at 250-762-3300 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 to remain anonymous.