Authorities in the Northwest Arctic community of Selawik found a body in the aftermath of a house fire on Saturday morning.
According to an Alaska State Trooper’s dispatch, the cause of the fire is unknown. The person has not been positively identified yet, but local responders searched and were unable to account for 35-year-old Selawik resident Lester Hingsbergen. The body has been sent to the State Medical Examiner’s Office for an autopsy and positive identification.
At least three people were able to escape the fire, with one person transported to Anchorage with second degree-burns. A state Department of Public Safety spokesperson said they don’t think they were related to the victim.
The spokesperson says several local volunteers, village public safety officers, troopers and the state fire marshall responded to the fire.
