Resident of building identified as man killed in Round Lake fire
A man killed Friday in a fire at a downtown Round Lake apartment building has been identified as Aric McClure, a tenant of the building, Lake County officials said Monday.
Coroner Howard Cooper said McClure, 33, was found Saturday morning in rubble on the second floor of the heavily damaged building.
Preliminary autopsy results show McClure died from smoke and soot inhalation, Cooper said. Toxicology results are pending.
Greg Formica, chief of the Round Lake Area Fire Protection District, said the fire originated in one of the building's second floor apartments. The building in the 200 block of North Cedar Lake Road has four apartments on the second floor, and one in the back on the first floor.
Formica said the structure, which dates back to the early 1900s but has been added on to since, was destroyed by the fire.
The exact cause of the blaze remains unknown, but Formica said it appears to be accidental.
Firefighters called to the scene just before 5 p.m. Friday arrived to find smoke pouring from the building. The fire was extinguished at about 8:30 p.m. Friday night, but the building was deemed unsafe to enter until Saturday morning, when authorities discovered McClure's body.
No other injuries were reported.