Police are continuing to investigate the discovery of a body and a structure fire at a Carter County residence on Wednesday.
Firefighters with the Watauga and Stoney Creek Volunteer Fire Departments responded to a report of a structure fire at a home on Cripple Creep Loop in Watauga on Wednesday morning. Firefighters discovered the body of a deceased person inside the home and alerted deputies with the Carter County Sheriff’s Office. Officers contacted the State Fire Marshal’s Office, which also responded to the scene of the fire.
On Thursday afternoon, Carter County Sheriff Dexter Lunceford said the person found has not yet been identified.
“We’ve not had a confirmation of the identification yet,” Lunceford said. “We still have not heard anything from the medical examiner yet.”
No cause of death has been determined in the case at this time according to Lunceford.
“Just because the body was in the fire does not mean the person died because of the fire,” Lunceford said. “The body was in the hotspot, but that doesn’t tell us anything except the body was near where the fire started.”
In addition to the cause of death for the person whose body was found inside the burning home, Lunceford said law enforcement is also looking to discover how the fire started.
“The fire marshal is investigating it,” Lunceford said.