South Anchorage duplex fire leaves one person dead

One person was found dead after a duplex fire in the Jewel Lake area of South Anchorage early Saturday, officials said.

The cause of the fire, in the 9200 block of Jewel Lake Road just south of Dimond Boulevard, is still under investigation, said Anchorage Fire Department’s public information officer, Alex Boyd.

Dispatchers received multiple reports of a building fire, beginning at 1:29 a.m., Boyd said, with the first unit arriving at 1:33 a.m. More units were dispatched after it was known a resident was trapped in the home, he said.

Sixteen total units were dispatched, including ambulances, fire suppression units and command units, Boyd said.

Firefighters attempted to get into the house through windows, but the fire and structural damage prevented them from doing a full search of the home, he said.

The fire was under control by at 2:33 a.m., Boyd said. He said he didn’t know how many people lived in the residence.

No information about the individual who died is being released at this time, he said.

Firefighters were still on the scene Saturday afternoon, moving burnt vehicles away from the building and cleaning up debris. Groups of neighbors gathered in small groups, discussing what they heard earlier that morning.