A 71-year-old Salem woman was killed in an early Wednesday morning fire that gutted her home at 410 East Bennett Street.
Marion County Coroner Troy Cannon has identified the victim as Dollaine Wooley.
Salem Assistant Fire Chief Bill Fulton says flames were shooting from the back of the home in the 400 block of East Bennett on their arrival just before five am. A crew tried to make entry to the residence upon arrival to look for the occupant but had to retreat when the ceiling began collapsing. She was later pronounced dead at the scene.
Fulton says the State Fire Marshal’s office is investigating the cause of the fire. The fire was hot enough the radiant heat set a shed in the backyard on fire which was also destroyed. The initial fire calls were the backyard of the home was on fire.
Fulton says everything in the home will be a total loss and the north side of the roof has started to cave in.
Salem Firemen called Kell, Odin, and Kinmundy-Alma to the scene for mutual aid. The Centralia Fire Protection District stood by at the Salem Fire Station in the event of another fire.
The fire alarm first came in at 4:52 am Wednesday. Firemen cleared the scene around 9:45 am.
