Sean C. Morgan
Of The New Era
A house fire on 29th Avenue left one man dead on Dec. 19.
Dead at the scene was Theodore Brenner, 57. He was the owner and occupant of the home.
Sweet Home Police Department and Sweet Home Fire and Ambulance District responded to the fire, 1078 29th Ave., at approximately 10:27 a.m.
Officer Randy Gill and Sgt. George Dominy arrived at the residence first and found a large amount of smoke coming from the residence with flames visible on the west side of the house, Dominy said.
A witness told Gill and Dominy that someone was still inside, and they attempted to enter the residence through various windows and doors, but they were overwhelmed by smoke and heat from the flames. Their attempts were unsuccessful.
Sweet Home Fire and Ambulance District personnel arrived a short time later and extinguished the fire. Firefighters located Brenner’s body.
A team from the Police Department, Fire and Ambulance District and the State Fire Marshall’s Office conducted an investigation into the cause of the fire and the cause of Brenner’s death.
At this point in the investigation, there are no indications of any foul play, Dominy said.
“The door to the wood stove was open to the living room,” Fire Chief Mike Beaver said. Around it were piles of fuels, like newspapers. Some wood sat on top of and around the stove, as if it were being dried. A couch and an overstuffed recliner also were near the stove.
The fire originated just in front of the stove, Beaver said. Based on a consensus among investigators, “we have concluded that he was trying to start a fire.”
Nearby, investigators also found an empty can of charcoal lighter fluid, Beaver said. “There was nothing to indicate anything suspicious.
Open stove doors are responsible for most flue fires in the Sweet Home area, Beaver said. Often, a fire will die down and the resident will leave the door open while getting more wood. Oxygen gets the fire going again, and by the time they come back inside “they’ve got a blowtorch.”
Police are still awaiting a toxicology report before closing the case, Dominy said, but the death appears to be accidental.
Brenner had threatened suicide on Dec. 17. Police seized his rifle and transported him to Samaritan Lebanon Community Hospital for mental evaluation.
Dominy did not think the fire was a suicide attempt. Brenner was in the bathroom, away from the point of origin. If it were an attempt, and he had changed his mind, there were plenty of options for leaving.
Instead, the friend who reported the fire, told police that he had heard Brenner, apparently trapped in the bathroom, calling for help.