A 23-year-old Walker County man is dead after a fire destroyed his home in LaFayette.
Fire officials say at about 11:30 p.m. on the night of March 5, the City of LaFayette Fire Department responded to a residential fire off of Fortune Street. When emergency personnel made their way inside the home, they discovered the body of John Wiley in one of the bedrooms.
“It has been determined that the fire originated in the immediate area of the refrigerator and water heater. The 32-year-old, 900 square foot home was completely destroyed by the blaze,” said Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner John F. King. “The cause of this unfortunate fire has been ruled accidental. No smoke detectors were located in the home following the investigation.”
Commissioner King’s Fire Investigations Unit assisted the City of LaFayette Fire Department and the City of LaFayette Police Department with this investigation.
Wiley is the 24th victim to perish in a fire this year in Georgia. No working smoke detectors were found in 19 of the 22 fatal fires so far this year.

Thom Chandler
Thom Chandler is the editor of The Georgia Sun and has been writing, editing and managing websites and blogs since 1995. He is a lifelong Georgian and one of those increasingly rare Atlanta natives.