DECATUR COUNTY– The Kansas State Fire Marshal (KSFM) Investigation Division was requested by the Decatur County Sheriff’s Office to assist with a fire in the 200 BLK S. Buffalo Avenue, Oberlin, on Tuesday, April 21, according to a media release from the Office of the State Fire Marshal.
A Special Agent/Certified Fire Investigator from the KSFM, along with a Certified Fire Investigator from Colby, KS, responded to this fire event.
An off-duty firefighter smelled smoke while riding by the house. Oberlin Fire Department and the Decatur County Sheriff's Department were dispatched to the structure fire in a single-family house. The sheriff's department arrived first and found the victim, a 42-year-old Randy Allen Spencer, within the residence. With the help of an Oberlin City utility worker, Spencer was pulled out the front door just as firefighters were arriving. Lifesaving measures were started, and Spekcer was transported to a local county hospital and later airlifted to a burn unit in Lincoln, Nebraska. Spencer was later removed from life support, and an autopsy is scheduled. There were no other reported injuries.
The fire incident remains under investigation at this time.