35-year-old man dies in early-morning Greensboro house fire on Textile Drive

Kelvin Williams, 35, was found in the back bedroom of a home in the 2600 block of Textile Drive and later died at a local hospital after an early-morning structure fire, authorities said. The blaze was reported around 12:45 a.m. on March 5 and crews quickly went to work, city officials and local reports show.

Firefighters from Fire Station 7 arrived within about four minutes of dispatch, with the Greensboro Police Department and Guilford County Emergency Medical Services also responding, WXII reported. WFMY said 26 firefighters ultimately responded and that crews had the fire under control just after 1 a.m.

Deputy Chief Dwayne Church described the tactics used on scene, saying, "With that amount of fire, we went into an offensive approach. We’re going to make an aggressive interior attack on the fire. Pulled lines off the truck." Church also said, "As they were attacking the fire and extinguishing the fire, they were doing a quick search and located a male victim in the back bedroom," language reported in WGHP’s feed.

Fire personnel removed Williams and he was transported by ambulance to a nearby hospital, where he later died; authorities say next of kin have been notified, according to WXII and ABC45. WFMY reported that Williams was the only person in the home at the time and that no firefighters were hurt while battling the blaze.

Most accounts place the incident in the 2600 block of Textile Drive; ABC45/WXLV lists the specific address as 2605 Textile Drive. Multiple outlets caution that the cause and origin of the fire remain under investigation by Greensboro fire investigators and police.

Officials noted working smoke alarms were present in the home. The Greensboro Fire Department is reminding residents to maintain working alarms and is offering free smoke alarm installation for City of Greensboro residents; residents can request service by calling 336-373-2576 or 336-373-ALRM, local media reported.

Investigators have not released a cause or origin for the fire, and the Greensboro Fire Department said updates will be provided as the investigation continues.