By Katie Wedell and Marc Katz
Dayton Daily News
BUTLER TOWNSHIP, Ohio — A Butler Twp. woman was listed in fair condition at Miami Valley Hospital Tuesday, a day after a fire took the life of her husband and gutted their house on 2151 Kershner Road early Monday morning.
The fire apparently started in the bedroom, according to Butler Twp. Fire Chief Dan Alig, who was awaiting a report from the state fire marshal before any details were released.
Lester McIntosh died in the fire that started around 8 a.m. Monday, according to authorities. His wife Alene McIntosh was taken to the hospital.
Darrel Francis, Alene’s brother-in-law, lives next door and said he heard sirens early in the morning on the remote road. While his house is in a heavily-forested area and sits down a hill from the Mc-Intosh’s, he rushed up a foot path to see what was happening.
“I saw smoke in the house,” Francis said. “And I could see fire come out of the back window.”
He did not know the exact age of McIntosh, but said he was in his 80s.
Fire trucks from Butler Twp., Vandalia and Englewood responded to the fire. A firefighter from Englewood was injured when some roofing fell on him. His injuries are not serious, and he was released from the hospital before noon.
The State Fire Marshal’s Office is investigating and said it would wait on the Montgomery County coroner’s report before commenting on the cause of the fire or the fatality. As of Tuesday afternoon, the coroner had not completed his report.
The brick outside the house was still standing but firefighters said the inside of the home was ruined.
Butler Twp. fire officials said this was the first fire fatality they could remember in decades.
There were 106 fire fatalities in Ohio in 2012, according to state fire marshal statistics, down from 128 in 2011 and 155 in 2010.
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