16-year-old dies when fire spreads through North Carolina campground, officials say
A 16-year-old boy was killed when flames tore through a Western North Carolina campground over the weekend, officials say.
A fire that started Sunday night in a camper burned nine units, destroying seven of them, according to the Swain County Sheriff’s Office. It happened at Ela Campground & RV Park in Bryson City, a mountain town roughly 60 miles west of Asheville, officials said in a Facebook post.
A teenager, who officials identified as Blake Lantz, died in the fire. His brother was hurt but is expected to be OK, the sheriff’s office said.
As of as of Monday morning, Swain County deputies and the N.C. Bureau of Investigation were investigating the blaze, according to officials.
Officials say Lantz’s body is being taken to Chapel Hill for an autopsy.
This story was originally published November 30, 2020 at 10:00 AM with the headline "16-year-old dies when fire spreads through North Carolina campground, officials say."
