One person perishes in trailer home fire

By Diana Haecker
A trailer home at Dexter Bypass Road burned to the ground on Tuesday, February 1, claiming one fatality.
Authorities have not yet confirmed the identity of the body that was found in the ruins, but the owner of the trailer, Darryl Williams Sr., has not been located since the fire consumed his home.
The Alaska State Troopers were notified at 8:59 p.m. of a residential structure fire at the Dexter Bypass Road. They alerted  the Nome Volunteer Fire Department. When NVFD volunteers arrived at the scene, the structure was completely engulfed in flames, said Fire Chief Jim West Jr.
The fire occurred amidst an unusually strong windstorm, making it even harder to fight the flames. Nineteen firefighters were on scene, with two fire trucks and one rescue truck. Since the fire occurred in an area without fire hydrants and no water source, they had to run to town twice to fill up the fire trucks with water and navigate wind-polished icy roads. The roof had collapsed and after dumping about 6,000 gallons of water on the structure, the fire was extinguished around 11:30 p.m.
NVFD volunteers went back the next day at daytime with the Alaska State Troopers after the owner of the trailer could not be found in town. They found the body of an adult person in the rubble. Troopers sent the remains to the State Medical Examiner for identification. Austin McDaniel, spokesperson for the troopers, said the medical examiner has not yet made a positive identification of the body.
The state’s fire marshal also had sent an investigator to Nome to investigate the cause of the fire, said AST Sergeant Aileen Witrosky.
The family of Darryl Keith Williams started a gofundme fundraiser for funeral expenses.