A man died after an overnight house fire destroyed a home in Williamsburg, Blair County, and damaged a neighboring house.
First responders were called around 3:30 a.m.
Monday to the 700 block of West Third Street.
Officials said 38-year-old Tyler Gearheart was the only person inside the home and became trapped.
The Blair County coroner said Gearheart died in the house and confirmed his identity just before noon Monday.
When crews arrived, they found heavy fire and began searching the home, Williamsburg Fire Department Chief Travis Prough said. “Upon arrival we had heavy fire in the front. It was also moving through the middle of the house, top and bottom floors, We had two crews enter the house from the A side and the D side. We sent two crews in for a primary search where we located a victim in the second floor in a bedroom.”
The house was deemed a total loss, officials said.
A neighboring home also suffered damage. Neighbor Max Herman said he and others called 911 after their dog woke them up. “If our dog wouldn’t woke us up we our house probably be gone too,” Herman said. He said they saw “like orange flickering through the window,” and later watched firefighters work.
“It was all we could do is just sit on this curb and just watch and hope that they got here in time and so we’re very thankful for that,”
Officials said an autopsy is scheduled for the victim Tuesday at Mount Nittany Hospital. A state police fire marshal is investigating the cause of the fire.