RACINE, Wis. — A man died following a fire inside a home with hoarding-like conditions in Racine Wednesday morning, fire officials say.
64-year-old Darrell Oates was unable to escape the blaze. According to the Racine Fire Department, crews responded to Prospect and MLK Drive around 12:30 a.m.
Crews forced entry and found hoarding-like conditions throughout the first floor of the two-story multifamily home. The fire department says crews searched both floors through waist-high piles of debris.
The upstairs tenant was not home during the fire. The downstairs tenant, Oates, lived alone and was found dead inside the home.
Just after midnight, neighbor Lasheky Hill saw bright red glowing from a window where she knows her neighbor's bedroom is located. Hill described how she ran up the porch steps, but it was too late, the fire had spread too far and the windows were breaking from the heat.
She began to shout for him.
"We know him by Ralph. His nickname here is Ralph," Hill said. "I ran back and just screamed 'Ralph! Ralph!' with all my might for a long time."
It was too late. The 64-year-old was pronounced dead at the scene. The victim's brother who owns the home was not ready to talk on camera. He shared this photo with us:
"(He) was (a) nice person. He bought the kids little sodas. He would sit out on the porch all the time and come out here. His room was right there, he always sat at that table right there," said Hill.
Racine Fire Lieutenant Joe Larson believes at this point, the fire started by accident.
"We're not 100 percent sure where it started at this point. It might not have been the kitchen, it might have been an adjoining room. We just know he was found in the kitchen," Lt. Larson said.
Lt. Larson says there were two factors that made it very hard for the 64-year-old to even have a chance to make it out alive.
"There was a lot of debris, it was kind of hoarder conditions in there," Lt. Larson said.
Lt. Larson says there were also no working smoke alarms. He hopes this serves as a reminder for everyone to make sure they have a working smoke detector in every room, to protect themselves, and first responders.
"And it's a big large fire and you have a victim in there, we have to go in there regardless of how dangerous it is and enter those conditions," he said.
Crews were able to bring the fire under control in 20 minutes. A total of 26 firefighters responded to the scene.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation, but no foul play is suspected. The Racine Fire Department is also reminding the public about the danger of hoarding large amounts of items inside your home.
"This creates a large safety hazard due to the increased potential fire load inside the residence and creates a clear and present danger to responders attempting to access and search and rescue," the fire department said Wednesday. "Also, a reminder that working smoke alarms save more lives than firefighters ever will."
Meanwhile, neighbors will miss Oates' presence on their Racine block.
"I just feel bad because it just ain't gonna be the same. I'm used to seeing him right there…"
