UNION TOWNSHIP, Ohio — One person is dead after an apartment in Union Township caught fire Wednesday morning, according to Union Township Interim Fire Chief Mark Fyffe.
Thursday morning, the identity of the victim in the fire was released by the Hamilton County Coroner. Gina Runyon, 62, of Union Township was identified as that person.
Fyffe said firefighters got to the apartment building on Old State Route 74 quickly; the apartment building is next door to the Union Township fire station.
Firefighters rescued two people from the apartment building. One of those people did not require medical care, but the other was taken by ambulance to a hospital. Fyffe said that person ultimately died.
Fyffe said the preliminary investigation showed the fire began in one apartment and did not spread to any other units. He said firefighters found "smoking debris" and medical oxygen. He said they suspect a lit cigarette could have been the cause of the fire.
"If anything comes out of this, I think that's the message. Don't smoke around oxygen," he said. "Every year, we hear of dozens of fires — oftentimes fatal fires — that result from either smoking on oxygen or smoking in an area where oxygen is located."
Most people living in the apartment building self-evacuated and, because the extent of the damage is limited to the fire's source, most will be able to return to their homes quickly, Fyffe said.
Officials have not released information on what caused her death.
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