Brothers Killed In Bartow County House Fire Identified (UPDATED)

KINGSTON, GA — State fire officials have identified the two brothers who were killed early Friday in a Bartow County house fire. Scottie Croy, 49, and Jeffrey Croy, 39, both of Kingston, both died in the fire that destroyed a home in Kingston, said Glenn Allen, director of communications for the State Insurance Commissioner's Office.

Bartow County firefighters were dispatched around 1:29 a.m. Dec. 29 to the home at 24 Martin Luther King Jr. Circle NW. Fire crews arrived to find the single story house with "moderate fire and heavy smoke showing," said Bartow County Fire Department Division Chief David Levey.

While beginning its initial attack on the fire, crews found an elderly man and woman who escaped the house and informed firefighters that two men were still inside the home. Firefighters performed a search and removed the brothers from the house. EMS officials attempted to revive both victims, but they were unsuccessful.

Allen said the men's parents, David Croy, 68, and Glenda Croy, 69, were transported to area hospitals to be treated for burns and smoke inhalation.

Deputy Insurance and Fire Commissioner Jay Florence said the investigator determined the fire started in the rear bedroom of the house.

“There was nothing suspicious about this fire, and we believe an electrical malfunction possibly caused the blaze," Florence added.

Investigators found no signs of a working smoke alarm inside the home. Friday's deaths brings the total number of Georgians who have died as a result of a fire this year to 118. Of those deaths, 106 have occurred in residential housing, the state added. The Bartow County Fire Department and the Kingston Police Department assisted with the investigation.

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