On Nov. 24, a house fire on Bull Run Road claimed two lives. Those victims have now been officially identified as David Collins and Charlotte Keezer.
“The case of course is still ongoing in determining cause of death,” said coroner Sierra Durbin. She added it would likely be “a few more weeks” before the case will conclude.
Deputy State Fire Marshall Mike Killebrew said that the home’s debris was too dangerous to adequately inspect, though the office tentatively suspects a heater to be at fault.
“I’ll be honest, I didn’t go in,” said Deputy Killebrew. “It was too dangerous. I wrote it ‘undetermined.’ There was no way I could get in.”
When the Columbia-Adair Fire Department arrived to the blaze in the early hours that Sunday morning, the home was already engulfed in flames. It was there they found the two bodies who would later be identified by the state Medical Examiner as Collins and Keezer in the house’s bedroom area. At the time, Coroner Durbin stated that they were likely asleep when the fire occurred.
Collins served as Adair County’s seventh district constable prior to his death.
