Man dies in townhome fire in Cobb

“The first police officers and the neighbors attempted to (enter the townhome),” Dupree said. “There was too much fire and smoke.”

Investigators believe the fire was accidental and may have started in the kitchen of the Marietta townhome in the Garden Villas complex near Powers Ferry Road and Delk Road.

None of the callers reported hearing a smoke alarm going off and investigators didn’t find one in the two-story townhome that was heavily damaged by the flames, Dupree said.

“We had fire pretty much everywhere,” Dupree said. “The heaviest damage was in the kitchen area.”

One neighbor, Scott Jegen, tried to enter the townhome to save the man, in his late 60s. according to Channel 2 Action News.

“The flames were just so intense on that unit I couldn’t go anywhere near it,” Jegen told Channel 2. He said he was able to help a woman in a neighboring unit get out.

Investigators are awaiting a medical examiner report before releasing the identity of the person who died, but neighbors told Channel 2 he lived alone.

Dupree said investigators arrived at the fire 10 minutes after receiving the 911 call. Their arrival was delayed by about a minute because they had trouble locating the unit in the large complex. Dupree said the complex is very jumbled and many buildings were not clearly marked. Firefighters worked quickly to contain the fire and limited it from spreading to neighboring units, he said.

“It’s sad that someone lost their life but it could have been a lot worse,” Dupree said. “The lady next door had five kids. That whole building could have been burned down.”