By Joe Johnson
An Athens woman on Wednesday afternoon was found deceased by firefighters who responded to a fire at her home on Nowhere Road.
The woman was identified by Athens-Clarke County Coroner Sonny Wilson as 52-year-old Juana Morales Garcia, who lived alone at 130 Nowhere Road.
“This is a tragic loss for this family and our community. Please keep them in your thoughts,” Fire Chief Jeff Scarbrough said.
According to a news release issued by the Athens-Clarke County Fire and Emergency Services Department, firefighters responded to a 2:24 p.m. report of Garcia’s home being on fire.
“Our first arriving unit arrived just minutes later responding from our station on Danielsville Road," the release stated. “On arrival, they reported heavy smoke and fire conditions showing from a mobile home. The crew made a rapid interior attack on the fire. Several additional units arrived at the scene just moments later. The fire was quickly brought under control, but unfortunately, crews discovered a deceased fire victim.”
An investigation as to the possible cause and origin of the fire was ongoing.
Wilson said that Garcia’s body will be transported to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation’s Crime Lab for an autopsy to determine the cause of death.
The news release emphasized the importance of having working smoke alarms, and to make sure the alarms are no older than 10 years old, and that smoke alarm batteries are replaced each year, at around the annual time change.