DOUGLAS COUNTY, Ga. — Investigators are working to determine what started a house fire that killed a man in Douglas County. Neighbors say the smoke could be seen for miles and the house was destroyed within minutes. A 73-year-old man and his dog never made it out, though the victim's son was able to escape.
Firefighters say the fire started just before 9 a.m. on Western Piles Drive in Douglasville.
One neighbor told Channel 2's Matt Johnson she banged on the door to wake up everyone inside the house.
The man who died inside the home is Ulis Slay, 73.
Slay's son came outside after his neighbor banged on the home's door. %
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The neighbor says the son didn't realize the house was on fire.
According to the neighbor, the fire and smoke made it too hard to go inside for his father and his father's dog so the son waited until firefighters arrived.
"The police officer just told us that we saved his life, because within a few minutes the house was totally engulfed in flames," the neighbor said.
Slay's brother, Bob Slay, says his younger brother was the one relative he could still visit.
"He was my only brother left," Slay said. "I got nobody else in the family to talk to."
Bob Slay says his younger brother was a Vietnam veteran and a retired truck driver.
The family told Johnson that they believe the fire was electrical in nature.