92-Year-Old Killed In Decatur Fire

DECATUR, GA — A 92-year-old man was killed Sunday morning in a house fire that destroyed a home in Decatur.

Two other people were hospitalized in the fire, at 751 Medlock Rd. in the Medlock Park neighborhood, which broke out at about 11 a.m. Sunday, according to DeKalb County Fire & Rescue.

A GoFundMe page created to raise funds for the victims by a neighbor identifies the victim as Harold F. Smith.

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"(A) family in the Medlock community lost a loved one and their home due to a house fire," wrote Jesse Winchester, a neighbor who started the fundraiser. "They also lost their beloved pets. Harold F. Smith did not escape during the house fire. Two other people are currently at Grady Hospital being treated for severe burns.

"The family will need everything they can possibly get for medical expenses, funeral cost, and putting their life back together."

According to DeKalb Fire, several people living in the home had to escape by jumping through windows. Brandon Brantley, who lived at the home and called the victim "Grandpa," told Fox 5 News that the home filled with smoke and flames so quickly they couldn't find Smith.

"(W)e looked for the cats, trying to find Grandpa, and everything, and after that, it just went up in smoke," Brantley told the station.

Firefighters were able to free Smith from the home, but he died later at a nearby hospital, the fire department said. No cause for the fire was known when DeKalb Fire posted about it to social media on Sunday.

Photo courtesy DeKalb County Fire & Rescue