Woman dies in LV blaze

Jace Radke

Tuesday, Jan. 30, 2001 | 11 a.m.

The death of a 29-year-old woman found Monday night in a burning home near downtown is under investigation by both homicide and fire investigators.

Fire crews discovered the blaze near Bruce Street and Stewart Avenue about 10:40 p.m. and had it out in five minutes, a Las Vegas Fire Department spokesman said, but their speed was not enough to save the life of the woman, whose name had not been released this morning until family members can be notified.

The cause of the fire at 1619 Harly Way and the cause of the woman's death are under investigation, spokesman Tim Szymanski said.

When a fire crew sent to investigate smoke in the area found the fire, the back half of the house was engulfed in flames, Szymanski said. They found the young woman on the bathroom floor.

Howard Simmons, a neighbor, tried to get into the house to see if the young woman was inside, but couldn't get past the flames and smoke, said Mike Sellers, who also lives on Harly.

"He tried to get in, but there were big flames coming out of the windows," Sellers said. "It looks like the fire busted out all the windows on the backside of the house."

The fire was confined to a back living room area of the house and caused an estimated $10,000 in damage. The home was being renovated, Szymanski said.

Neighbors described the victim as a nice person, who was not a full-time resident at the house.

"She was a good woman who would come over to my house for coffee sometimes," said one neighbor, who asked not to be identified. "She lived here sometimes, but she also spent a lot of time in California. Sometimes different people lived in the house."

Szymanski said that investigators were sifting through conflicting stories about the victim and her status as a resident at the house.

Metro homicide detectives are working with fire investigators, which is routine on fatal fires. This was the second fatal blaze of the year.

On Jan. 21 Roosevelt Jones, 71, died in an early morning fire after becoming trapped in the house by metal security bars welded to his bedroom window.

There were three fire-related deaths in the city of Las Vegas last year, and a total of 20 fire deaths in Clark County.