Louisiana Woman Dies After Falling Into Debris Pile She Was Burning

An elderly Folsom, Louisiana woman has died after being rescued from a brush fire in St. Tammany Parish.

Around 1:00 p.m. on Sunday, August 27, a deputy with the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff's Office was traveling on LA 25 in Folsom when he spotted a brush fire spread to a shed on a property. As the deputy pulled over to investigate, a volunteer firefighter was doing the same and called the fire into St. Tammany Fire District #5.

Crews arrived and began extinguishing the fire. At some point, they discovered an unconscious woman within the burned property area.

The woman was taken to a New Orleans hospital in critical condition but later died.

An autopsy will be conducted to determine the official cause of death.

As far as the fire goes, it did spread to a neighboring property, but firefighters were able to contain the fire quickly and eventually extinguished it completely.

Following an investigation, fire deputies learned the woman was an 84-year-old resident of the home who is believed to have been actively burning a debris pile when for unknown circumstances she fell into the fire.

“Our hearts are broken for this family tonight, “ said State Fire Marshal Dan Wallis, “This is a horrific situation that should stun every single person in this state. These conditions are not exaggerated and they affect every one of us, even if you can’t see the flames and your community isn’t under threat of wildfire today. Doing any activity involving fire right now can lead to tragedy for you, your loved ones, your neighbors and your community.”

Residents of Louisiana are reminded that a statewide burn ban remains in effect until rescinded.

Violating the burn ban order could result in civil and/or criminal penalties.