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Elderly Woman Dies In Grand Prairie House Fire

GRAND PRAIRIE (CBSDFW.COM) - An elderly woman's bedroom erupted into flames on Thursday morning, leaving her dead and her family grieving. It happened at about 5:45 a.m. along Galveston Street in Grand Prairie, and marks the city's first house fire death of the year.

A witness said that he smelled smoke and heard someone screaming for help. It looked too dangerous to enter, that man said, so he called 911. But, by the time that firefighters arrived at the scene, the 81-year-old woman's bedroom was already engulfed in flames.

Crews tried to save the woman, but it was already too late. "They made their way in, started fighting the fire, and immediately reported they found the fire victim," stated Assistant Chief Bill Murphy. "With the heavy involvement in there, we knew there wasn't anybody we could save."

Murphy said that the fire started in the bedroom and stayed in the bedroom. The cause is not known.

The victim's granddaughters explained that the woman was bedridden and checked on daily. There is typically somebody with her at all times, but nobody else was at the home on Thursday morning. Neighbors added that she had lived at this location for decades and was a very friendly woman.

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