Woman found dead following house fire
By Kevin Kelley
Fairview Park
Published Sept. 5, 2007

A woman was found dead inside a West 220th Street house that caught fire the afternoon of Aug. 29.

Cuyahoga County Coroner Frank Miller said the woman was Gwen Bewley, 67.

“The cause of death is still under investigation,” the coroner said. He expects to make a ruling sometime this week, he said.

Miller said it is possible that the woman died of natural causes before the fire. That explanation is based on a firefighter’s report that the woman apparently made no attempt to escape the house.

The fire was reported at 4:48 p.m. and the first units arrived on the scene four minutes later, Fairview Park Fire Chief David Simon said.

The fire started in the kitchen, he said.

The woman apparently lived alone, according to Simon. No one else was in the house at the time of the fire, he said.

The state fire marshal’s office is conducting the investigation, the fire chief said.

Two firefighters suffered minor injuries during the blaze.

A Fairview Park firefighter, Steve Lee, suffered minor burns on the face and later sought treatment at Fairview General Hospital, the fire chief said.

Dave Stein, assistant director of EMS for the North Olmsted Fire Department, suffered minor burns on his hand.

The North Olmsted Fire Department, along with fire units from Bay Village, Rocky River, Lakewood, Olmsted Falls, Olmsted Township and Westlake, assisted in battling the blaze.

Simon praised the camaraderie among the neighboring fire departments.

“I thank the surrounding communities for coming on board and helping us with mutual aid,” Simon said.

The woman’s death, if caused by the fire, would be the first house fire fatality in the city in over a decade, according to Simon.