Overnight Kitchen Fire Kills Area Resident

One person has died in an early morning housefire in Cedar Rapids.
Fire crews were called out at about 2am today (Tuesday, Aug. 23) to a home in the 600 block of "A" Avenue NW.

One of the residents, 20 year old Alize Watson, was rescued by a neighbor with a ladder. She sustained minor injuries.

However, the other resident, 22 year old Naquave Whitlock, was trapped inside the house; when firefighters finally got control of the flames, they found Whitlock's body inside.

He was taken to a local hospital, and pronounced dead.

The cause of the fire was apparently a pan of grease left unattended on the kitchen stove.