Elderly Woman Killed in Dearborn House Fire

An elderly woman was found dead in her home during a house fire Monday night in the 3200 block of Monroe in Dearborn.

The woman, whose name has not been released, was found in a back bedroom of the house. She was pronounced dead on the scene.

The Fire Department received a call about the blaze from a neighbor around 9:45 p.m. There was heavy smoke and intense flames in all floors of the house by the time firefighters arrived on the scene, said Dearborn Fire Chief Joseph Murray.

"They got water on it right away," he said. "But it was downstairs, upstairs, in the basement; we had to pull the chimney down."   

Firefighters from three local stations were dispatched to the home. It appeared as though the fire had been burning for awhile before they arrived, Murray said. They were able to control the blaze in about a half hour.

Though the cause of the fire has not yet been determined, no working smoke detectors were found in the home, which could have been a large factor, Murray said.

Firefighters left the scene around 2:30 a.m. In addition to fighting the blaze, firefighters also had to battle with extreme cold Monday night.

"The guys did a really good job, it was really cold out there," Murray said. "The hose lines were all frozen, they were really difficult conditions. I was impressed with how they handled the situation."