A man was found dead in a Mankato house after a fire Wednesday.
A friend called 911 after finding the residence at 1403 Carney Ave. filled with smoke around 11:45 a.m.
Firefighters contained the fire to one room and found a body, according to Jeff Bengtson, associate director of the Mankato Department of Public Safety. Authorities had not released the person’s identity or cause of death as of early Wednesday evening.
Harry Stevenson, of North Mankato, told The Free Press the 70-year-old victim lived alone in the house and had checked himself out of a care facility Tuesday.
Stevenson said he was delivering a walker to his friend. When he opened a door to the house, Stevenson said he was overcome with smoke and could see flames in the living room.
He called for his friend but did not hear a response. Stevenson said the smoke was too thick for him to go inside so he called 911.