NEW ORLEANS — Firefighters said one person died in a Seventh Ward fire Monday.
The blaze broke out shortly before noon, officials said. The building was a single-story, wood-framed shotgun double with flames coming from the rear of the house.
The victim, a 76-year-old man, was found "burned beyond recognition in the kitchen of the home," fire officials said in a statement.
The New Orleans Fire department shared a tweet appearing to show firefighters attempting to help a cat that had been caught in the fatal blaze by giving it air through an oxygen mask.
A firefighter battling the fire was transported to a hospital by ambulance after injuring his ankle.
The 1-alarm fire was reported in the 2700 block of O'Reilly Street. Five displaced residents are being helped by the American Red Cross, fire officials said.
Fire officials did not give any additional information about the fire. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
The victim was not identified Monday afternoon.
This is the second fatal fire in New Orleans in less than a week. On Thanksgiving, a partially paralyzed woman died in a fire started by a heater overloading a power strip in a bedroom.
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