Wednesday House Fire In East Austin Claims Third Life

EAST AUSTIN, TX — The deadly East Austin fire that left several people injured and two dead on Wednesday has claimed yet another life, Austin fire officials announced Friday. The third victim is a 91-year-old woman who died after being hospitalized.

The fire broke out Wednesday morning in the 2900 block of East 12th Street. Officials said the blaze was reported just before 11 a.m. by a neighbor. When firefighters arrived at the scene, they saw flames coming out of a window in the building.

Two victims were reported dead at the scene of the fire, and another four had been injured, officials said. Of the injured victims, three had minor injuries that were treated at the scene and another was hospitalized with severe injuries.

The Austin American-Statesman reported Wednesday that the home was considered a total loss and that officials were still working to determine what caused the deadly blaze.

According to Austin Energy, the home — which is located just west of Airport Boulevard — is located in an area of the city that was without power at the time of the fire. According to Austin Power's outage maps, that area had been without power since 2 a.m. on Wednesday.

The victims who were pronounced dead at the scene of the fire were identified only as a 58-year-old man and a 54-year-old woman. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

"We are aware of reports that it might have been attributed to some sort of indoor warming fire, but we won't have a final official cause for a while,"Austin Fire Division Chief Stephen Truesdell told the Statesman.

In a news conference on Thursday, Austin Fire Department Assistant Chief Brandon Wade encouraged residents to remain cognizant of the dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning and indoor fires.

Wade reminded residents they should only burn fire wood and fire logs in their fireplaces. Treated wood and other products should never be burned, and fires should not be burned indoors unless inside a fireplace.

Residents who experience a fire in their home or apartment building should call 911 immediately, Wade said.

"Due to road conditions, response times can be slowed down as crews try to make it through the snow and the ice," Wade said. "Do not wait or expect that somebody else has already called until you see a fire truck on scene."

Patch editor Jeff Arnold contributed to this report.