A woman pulled from a mid-morning house fire was pronounced dead at the scene Dec. 12.
“[Firefighters] found a person unconscious inside of the house,” Gallup Police Department Capt. Marinda Spencer said. “They weren’t successful in reviving the individual.”
The victim was later identified as Terri Martinez, 52, of Rio Rancho, N.M. She worked at the Gallup Indian Medical Center.
Spencer said the call on the fire, at 608 S. Woodrow, came in Metro Dispatch shortly before 11 am.
First responders were on scene within minutes, and kept the blaze from spreading to other structures.
Office of the Medical Investigator officials arrived on scene to investigate the death.
At this juncture, it’s not clear what may have ignited the blaze. Spencer said a full investigation involving the state fire marshal’s office is underway, but a police official said it was likely the result of an electrical malfunction.
