Man burned in apartment fire dies

By Mary Manning

Published Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2008 | 7:49 a.m.

Updated Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2008 | 9:38 a.m.

An elderly man who had burns on the lower half of his body and was found unconscious in an apartment at 500 W. Owens Ave., about 10:30 p.m. Tuesday has died, said Tim Szymanski, spokesman for the Las Vegas Fire Department

The cause of death will be determined by the Clark County coroner's office.

When firefighters arrived to what they believed to be a cooking fire in an apartment at Ruby Duncan Manor, they found the man unconscious on the floor with serious burns and the fire was out. He was taken to University Medical Center where he died about an hour later, Szymanski said.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation, but it appears it started as a grease fire that caught the man's clothing on fire, causing burns, Szymanski said.

If the man's death is ruled a fire fatality, it will be the sixth fatal fire in the city this year, Szymanski said. Cooking fires are the leading cause of fires in the city and in the United States. They are also the leading cause of fire-related injuries. Careless smoking remains the leading cause of fatal fires.

Of the five fatal fires this year in Las Vegas, three are believed to be the result of careless smoking, Szymanski said.