Wind blows fire into house, killing man

A man died Tuesday afternoon after a windblown fire spread quickly from a garage to a Cape Cod-style home off Waggoner Road in Truro Township.

Truro Township firefighters were called at 1:40 p.m. to the fire in the 700 block of Waggoner Road. Upon arriving, they found the attached garage in flames and spreading through the house.

Firefighters broke into the house and found a man unconscious in the kitchen. He was reported to be in cardiac arrest in the EMS unit. He was rushed to Ohio State University's Wexner Medical Center, where he later died, said Truro Township Fire Assistant Chief Jeff Sharps.

The man's name was not being released last night. Sharps said the victim appeared to be an older male. He said an autopsy would determine the cause of death.

The fire had gone from the garage into the home's fully finished attic and quickly extended across the structure, Sharps said, making it difficult to get inside and battle the fire. Jefferson Township firefighters assisted at the scene.

Another factor that hindered firefighters was that the garage was on the home's west side, the direction from which the wind was blowing Tuesday afternoon. Most homes in the area face east or west, but this one, atop a ridge, faces south.

The fire's cause has not been pinpointed, but it is not suspicious, Sharps said.

The home was a total loss, Sharps said.

Franklin County auditor's records indicate the 2,196-square-foot woodframe home, built in 1955, had a market value of nearly $100,000.

The home is on the east side of Waggoner Road on 18.45 acres of farmland just north of the Quarry Park subdivision. The property was transferred to a trust on March 29.