Tragic fire claims a life

Voice Staff Report
editor@tmcvoice.com

Saturday, November 14, 2020, West McCreary Fire Department and Whitley City Fire Department responded to a house fire on Rattlesnake Ridge. The fire apparently started in the living room located in the front of the house. Renee Coffey Hicks was alone in the house at the time the fire started.
A passerby saw smoke coming from the front of house and tried to make entry through the front door but thick smoke prevented him from entering. He called on nearby neighbors to help him and to call 911 while he found a water hose and started spraying the front of the house.

The West McCreary Fire Department quickly arrived on scene in only 12 minutes after receiving the fire call. The Whitley City Fire Department arrived soon afterward. The firemen rapidly knocked the fire down, entered the house, located Ms. Hicks and brought her out. Tragically, Renee Hicks had already succumbed. McCreary Coroner, Tim Corder, said the apparent cause of death was smoke inhalation.
West McCreary Fire Department, Whitley City Fire Department, McCreary County Sheriff’s Department, Kentucky State Police, The Kentucky State Fire Marshall’s Office and McCreary County EMS assisted at the scene.