
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, March 2, 1990                   TAG: 9003023303
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: B2   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

ELDERLY WOMAN KILLED IN FIRE

An elderly Roanoke County woman was killed Thursday afternoon when the fire she started to burn trash got out of control and burned about an acre and a half of brush on her land.

The woman, tentatively identified as Lula Marie MtCassell, 73, apparently tried to fight the fire herself and became disoriented in the smoke, said Jack Beville, Roanoke County fire inspector.

The fire, which started beside the driveway of the woman's West County home at 3679 Popcorn Lane, was discovered and reported by Barry Crawford of the Division of Forestry at 12:20 p.m., Beville said.

The woman was dead when Crawford arrived, he said.

The Roanoke County Sheriff's Department is continuing to investigate the fire, but all signs point to an accident, said Sgt. Roger Robinson.

Investigators are waiting for autopsy results before making a positive identification of the body, Beville said.

by CNB