KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — The Knoxville Fire Department confirmed one death after a house fire Friday morning.
KFD responded to a report of smoke coming from a home in the 3200 block of Wilderness Road around 8:01 a.m.
After arriving on the scene, an officer reported that light smoke was coming from a single-story residence, KFD said. Crews then entered the house and quickly extinguished a small fire in a bedroom.
According to KFD, another fire company was searching the home and found a female fire victim in the bedroom. The victim was pronounced dead a short time later.
The identity of the victim has not been released at this time.
The home sustained moderate fire, water and smoke damage, KFD said. They also said there were no working smoke alarms in the home.
According to KFD, the fire was started by a "misuse of smoking materials." It said from 2016 to 2021, an estimated 18,100 home fires were started by smoking materials like cigarettes, pipes and cigars across the U.S.
KFD also said home fires started by smoking materials kill an average of 590 people annually and injure around 1,130 people per year. It said around one in 20 home fires are started by misusing smoking materials.
