Fire In ‘Vacant’ Newark Building Claims Woman’s Life: Police

ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — A fire in a “vacant” residential building in Newark claimed the life of a 26-year-old woman earlier this week, police say.

Firefighters initially discovered Lateisha E. Blair, 26, of Newark, as they battled a blaze in a three-story residential structure on the 200 block of Eastern Parkway around 6:32 p.m. on Jan. 20, according to the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office.

Authorities in the Regional Medical Examiner’s Office later identified Blair by her dental records, prosecutors said.

The cause and manner of her death are still pending, and the cause of the fire remains undetermined, prosecutors announced Thursday.

An investigation is ongoing, prosecutors said.

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