SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) – Authorities say there was no working smoke detector inside the building where a 51-year-old Springfield man died following a fire.
The State Journal-Register reports Garyl J. Gauch of Springfield died early Wednesday, shortly after a postal worker called to report a garage on fire.
Firefighters found Gauch while searching the burning building. He was later pronounced dead at a hospital.
Fire Marshal Chris Richmond said the detached garage had been converted into a two-bedroom apartment and Gauch had been renting the apartment for more than 10 years.
Richmond says the cause of the fire is under investigation. He says the residents didn’t have a working smoke alarm, despite an Illinois law requiring landlords provide smoke alarms in inhabited structures.
It’s unclear if one wasn’t provided or if it was removed.
