Frankford residents are mourning the death of the well-known owner of a local auto sales business after fire ripped through his neighborhood home.
The blaze was reported at 8:18 a.m. at 5323 Frankford Ave., just north of Bridge Street, and was declared under control at 8:47 a.m., according to Executive Chief Richard Davison, a Philadelphia Fire Department spokesman.
Rescuers pulled the victim from the two-story brick building and took him to Temple University Hospital, where he died a short time later.
Williams declined to name the victim, but news reports identified him as John Blitchford, 84, owner of Jack’s Auto Sales next door to the fire scene. Blitchford lived with another elderly man, who escaped the blaze and was hospitalized in stable condition with undisclosed injuries.
Fire officials continue to investigate the cause of the blaze. ••
