Baltimore Fire Department officials say a cluttered house hindered them as they tried to battle a fire in the Canton area of Baltimore early Tuesday morning.
At about 2 a.m., a fire broke out in a three-story brick row home in the 3000 block of Elliott Street, said Baltimore Fire Chief Kevin Cartwright, a department spokesman.
When about 45 firefighters responded, they encountered heavy fire and smoke on all three floors. As the fire grew in intensity, it caused a partial collapse in the rear of the third floor, Cartwright said.
But firefighters were not able to gain entry to the home because a large amount of trash was blocking the entrances, Cartwright said, adding the clutter could have put firefighters in danger.
“There was a gross amount of debris,” he said. “There were cabinet doors, lampshades, books, newspapers, boxes. Anything you can think of was inside this home.
“It appeared to be the normal living conditions of this occupant. It was just piled up to a point where you could not gain entry. It hampered the efforts of our firefighters.”
Fire officials were able to extinguish the blaze from the outside of the house, and at about 3:30 a.m. they found the body of an adult male dead on the second floor of the building, Cartwright said.
Cartwright preliminarily identified the man as resident James Flanagan, 66. The cause of fire remains under investigation.
