LORAIN — A fire early this morning at 1758 Broadway claimed the life of a Lorain man, according to Assistant Fire Chief Gary Burls.

The Lorain County coroner’s office identified the victim as 56-year-old Eugene Mahon.

The fire, called in at 4:30 a.m., burned a four-unit cottage owned by the Lorain Metropolitan Housing Authority just south of Kennedy Plaza, Burls said.

Lorain firefighters arrived at the scene in two minutes and found the fire fully involved but were able to rouse the occupants of the cottage’s other units, Burls said. He said he believed there was one person in each unit.

The fire was out by 4:52, and firefighters searching the building found Mahon slumped up against a bathroom door and overcome by smoke, Burls said.

Mahon’s apartment, which was where the fire started, was totally destroyed, and the other three apartments had some smoke damage, Burls said. He estimated the fire caused $40,000 in damage.

A cause has not been determined, but Burls said the Lorain Fire Department’s fire marshal as well as the state fire marshal are investigating.

Check back at Chroniclet.com for more information as it becomes available.

Contact Rona Proudfoot at 329-7124 or rproudfoot@chroniclet.com.

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