The Sidney Department of Fire and Emergency Services was dispatched to a structure fire at 627 Second Avenue, Sidney at 1:08 pm Thursday afternoon. Upon arrival, fire crews found a well-involved, wind-driven fire at a single-family, two-story residential structure. A box alarm was struck to recall all off-duty Sidney personnel and to receive mutual aid from Anna and Lockington Fire Departments. One occupant had escaped by jumping from a second-story window to a bystander below, but one occupant was trapped inside the residence. Fire crews initiated a coordinated fire attack and rescue simultaneously. The trapped victim was located in a second-story room by fire crews and was removed from the structure to an awaiting medic unit. Both victims were transported by Sidney personnel to Wilson Health.
The occupant who was able to escape the structure was transported to Wilson Health and then transferred to a Dayton-area hospital. After the rescue crew removed the other fire victim, CPR and other life-saving measures were administered. Despite the efforts, the victim was pronounced deceased at Wilson Health.
Fire crews battled the fire for approximately twenty minutes before bringing the incident under control. AES Ohio, CenterPoint Energy, and City of Sidney; Underground Utilities personnel were brought to the scene to control utilities.
The cause of the fire is under investigation by the Sidney Department of Fire and Emergency Services – Fire Investigation Unit and the State Fire Marshal’s Fire and Explosion Investigation Bureau. The loss to the residence, owned by Jay R. Higgins, is estimated at $60,000 to the structure and $30,000 to the contents.
***UPDATE*** The deceased victim of the fire at 627 Second Ave. has been identified as 59 year old Vernon King. Mr. King resided at the 627 Second Ave. structure