KANNAPOLIS — An elderly couple died after a fire at their home early today.
The Kannapolis Fire Department was dispatched at 2:37 a.m. to a reported house fire in the 1000 block of Ridge Avenue. Arriving on the scene, crews found the home in flames and called for additional equipment and manpower, a news release said.
After gaining entry, firefighters found two people unconscious. Both were taken outside and given CPR. A male resident was pronounced dead at the scene. A woman was revived and taken by EMS to Carolinas Medical Center-NorthEast in Concord, where she later died, according to news reports.
Neighbor Terry Davis told WBTV he tried to help the couple after his barking dog woke him and he saw the fire.
“I grabbed the phone and dialed 911,” Davis told WBTV. “Then I ran outside and tried to kick the door in to get in to them but I couldn’t get the door open.”
Davis told WBTV the elderly couple had lived in the home for more than 25 years.
The cause of the blaze remained under investigation this morning. Fire crews remained on the scene, working with the Kannapolis Police Department.
Cabarrus County EMS, Rowan County EMS, and the Landis Fire Department assisted on the scene. The Concord Fire Department and Enochville and Odell volunteer fire departments provided district coverage.