Body found in shed after fire at abandoned SW Atlanta restaurant

A body was found in a shed behind an abandoned southwest Atlanta restaurant after crews put out a blaze Wednesday morning.

The structure, located behind a former Mexican restaurant on Metropolitan Parkway, was fully engulfed in flames when authorities arrived about 4 a.m. The road was shut down for several hours south of Langford Parkway while firefighting efforts were underway.

Atlanta fire spokesman Anare Holmes said the body was not found until after the flames were knocked down and firefighters conducted a search.

“We are unsure at this time if the fatality is due to the fire or if there’s something suspicious,” he told AJC.com. “We called our partner DeKalb County, and they brought their dog.”

DeKalb County fire's detection dog was called in to investigate after a body was found.

Atlanta fire and police officials are leading the investigation with DeKalb’s assistance. The incident commander made the decision to bring in the detection dog, which Holmes said is standard procedure in possible arson cases.

According to authorities, the building has not been in use for quite some time. It is located in a mostly abandoned stretch of Metropolitan Parkway between Avery and Perkerson roads, next to a storage facility and across the street from an apartment complex.

Metropolitan Parkway was reopened to traffic by 7:30 a.m.

An Atlanta firefighter rolls up a hose line after putting out a fire in a shed behind an abandoned Mexican restaurant.

It is not known if the victim was male or female.

“We don’t know if they were homeless,” Holmes said. “We don’t know how the body got there.”