Man Killed In Peters Twp. House Fire

PETERS TOWNSHIP (KDKA) -- Crews battled a house fire in Peters Township late Thursday night.

The fire broke out at a home in the 200 block of Bower Hill Road just before 11 p.m. The home was fully engulfed in flames when firefighters arrived.

The Washington County Coroner said 84-year-old William Burton Phillips Sr. died in the fire. He was pronounced dead at the scene just after 1 a.m. Friday.

His wife, Naomi, was found in an upstairs bathroom. She had to be rescued by firefighters and taken to a local hospital. Donna Philips, her daughter, says she's in a medically induced coma.

"Two of the neighbors called me at night and said there's a fire at your mom and dad's house. The first call I got said it's in the garage – the other garage. If it was that garage, it wouldn't have been any big deal. When it was this garage, it's attached and that's basically how I found out," Donna said.

The Peters Township Fire Chief said Phillips was a retired electrician, who was working on a generator in his garage, after he lost power to his home because of a storm.

Donna Philips said her parents lived in the home since 1954. The couple was married for 68 years.

"He was Mr. Fix It. If you had a car that needed fixed, or a lawnmower, or a pair of scissors that needed sharpened, you brought them down to Bill," Donna said.

Fire crews finally cleared the scene just before 3 a.m.

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