Two people are dead after a Thursday night fire in a Seminole condominium.
Pinellas County sheriff’s deputies responded to a call to assist firefighters at 6:07 p.m. at the Twin Oaks Condominiums, 11200 102nd Ave. N. When they arrived, unit 143 was engulfed in flames.
A 97-year-old woman was found lying on the kitchen floor just inside the condo. Firefighters pulled the woman, later identified as Alice Haker, from the fire. She was treated at the scene and then taken by ambulance to Largo Medical Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
While firefighters were in the unit and were extinguishing the blaze, they discovered another woman inside. She was confirmed dead at the scene by paramedics. Investigators haven’t identified her, but believe she is 72-year-old Marlene Schaffran, who is Haker’s daughter and lived at the condo with her mother.
Sgt. Tom Nestor said the fire appears to be a tragic accident. There is no evidence of a crime, Nestor said.
Neighbor John Thompson tried to get in the home but had to retreat.
“I tried to go in but the smoke was so black and so thick that I couldn’t breathe,” Thompson said. “I tried to feel around (to see) if I could feel anybody near the door. I couldn’t breathe so I just backed away and basically called 911.”
There are four units in the block of one-story condominiums. Haker’s condo was destroyed; the other three were evacuated Thursday night as a precaution. Staff from the American Red Cross was on scene to help the residents find temporary shelter.
Pinellas County Sheriff's Office Homicide Unit and Arson Unit detectives are investigating the cause of the fire.
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