George Kowalski Identified As Victim In Fatal Monday Morning Fire In Laurel; Hoarding Conditions Made Battling Flames Difficult, Officials Say
LAUREL, Md. (WJZ) -- Officials have identified the 78-year-old man whose body was found following a fire at a home in Laurel on Monday morning.
Firefighters found the body of George Edward Kowalski inside his home around 10:50 a.m. The fire broke out in the 16000 block of Bond Mill Road just before 7:30 a.m.
Crews from multiple agencies, including fire departments from Anne Arundel, Howard, Montgomery and Prince George's counties, responded to the scene.
When they arrived, they found smoke and flames coming from the one-story house, the Prince George's County Fire Department said in a news release. The first floor had partially collapsed into the basement and was shortly deemed to be near full collapse, forcing firefighters to evacuate and battle the blaze from outside.
Man Dead, 3 Firefighters Hospitalized In Laurel House Fire
"Excessive storage conditions throughout the home" made fighting the fire more difficult, officials said. On Tuesday, the Maryland State Fire Marshal's office said six people had died in fires in recent weeks, multiple of which involved hoarding conditions.
Three Prince George's County firefighters were taken to an area hospital and later released.
The cause of Monday's blaze, which caused an estimated $345,000 in damage, has not been determined. The Prince George's County Police Department's homicide unit is investigating Kowalski's death but foul play is not suspected, the release said.
