Woman's death may not have been caused by fire
BY VINCENT TODARO
Staff Writer

SPOTSWOOD - Authorities are uncertain whether a fire that occurred on Pine View Way last month was responsible for the death of an elderly woman who was home at the time.

Spotswood Police Detective Edward Schapley said emergency responders found the body of a 74-year-old woman when they arrived at the scene on July 8 in response to a fire call. She was pronounced dead at the scene. However, police are unsure if she had died from a heart attack or other ailment before the fire began. Police are awaiting toxicology reports to determine the exact cause of death.

Schapley said it appears the fire was caused by a cigarette the woman had been smoking but failed to extinguish. Police believe the most likely scenario is that the woman became unconscious while the cigarette was still lit.

The woman lived alone, and police were told she was last seen the previous day.

The fire, which occurred about 4 p.m., was confined to a bedroom area and was "pretty much out already" when responders arrived due to oxygen conditions in the room, Schapley said. The fire is being considered accidental.

He said the woman did receive burns that were moderately severe. It did not appear that the woman had made any effort to escape the flames.

The Spotswood Fire Department responded along with police and the Middlesex County Medical Examiner's Office.

Police are also awaiting toxicology reports on a separate fire that took the lives of three people inside a Short Street home on May 27.

"Pretty much everything is under investigation right now," Schapley said.

It takes about three months for toxicology reports to come back, he said, though it's possible the conclusions from the July 8 fire will be in by the end of August.