The fire that killed a 62-year-old woman Jan. 7 at her rural Washougal home has been ruled an accident, and the woman died of smoke inhalation, according to the Skamania County Sheriff’s Office.
Marlene Dorego died in the blaze at her manufactured home, 2232 North Fork Road, according to the sheriff’s office. Her death and the fire were accidental, Undersheriff Dave Cox said.
“The cause (of the fire) has been undetermined but is not considered suspicious,” Cox said.
A security company reported a fire alarm activation at the Washougal house to dispatchers just after midnight.
Two minutes later, a neighbor called 911 to report that the house was covered in flames, with firefighters arriving to a fully engulfed house, Cox said.
Jay Martin, Dorego’s caregiver who lived in the residence when Dorego’s husband was away, escaped and was not injured, Cox said.
Martin was awakened by the sound of the fire alarm and found thick smoke had filled the house. He told deputies that he briefly saw Dorego before losing her in the smoke. Martin went outside and tried to gain access from the back of the residence, but by then the house was fully engulfed in flames, according to the sheriff’s office.
The Skamania County Sheriff’s Office led the investigation, but received assistance from the Clark County Medical Examiner’s Office and the Clark County Fire Marshall’s Office.
