NEW CASTLE, Ind. — An elderly man has died in an early morning fire, according to the New Castle Fire Department.
The fire department said crews were called to a structure fire at 5:21 a.m. on Friday in the 2500 block of Washington Street in New Castle. The fire was noticed by a passerby who told a dispatcher the front entrance to the home was on fire.
When police arrived on scene, neighbors were reportedly trying to get into the residence and knocking on the side of the house. The neighbors told police an elderly man lived inside.
Police officers with the New Castle Police Department were able to force their way inside the home and found the man just inside the doorway. He was unconscious and unresponsive, authorities said.
The resident, identified as 83-year-old William A. Miller, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Firefighters quickly extinguished the fire and determined that Miller was the only resident in the home at the time of the fire.
The cause of the fire was determined to be accidental, the fire department said.
