Man Dies After Being Trapped In Oakland County House Fire: Sheriff

INDEPENDENCE TOWNSHIP, MI — An eldery man died after he wasn't able to escape a house fire Wednesday in Oakland County, according to sheriff's officials.

The fire happened at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday at a home in the 7000 block of Clintonville Road in Independence Township, officials said.

Firefighters entered the burning home twice to try and rescue the elderly man but were driven back by thick smoke and intense heat each time, officials said.

They eventually made their way into the home and found 87-year-old Larry Dean Goforth, who was taken to a nearby hospital where he died, officials said.

An autopsy determined Goforth died from smoke inhalation, officials said.

Officials said Goforth was wheelchair-bound and unable to escape the burning home.

His 72-year-old wife told officials that she lost sight of him in the dense smoke and left the house, officials said.

She was also taken to a nearby hospital where she was treated for smoke inhalation and later released, officials said.

Officials were still investigating the cause of the fire.