A 61-year-old Waxhaw man died early this week after a fire tore through his home on Howie Mine Road, and investigators have since traced the blaze back to a single space heater. A police officer who tried to get inside the burning house was hurt in the attempt, and a second occupant made it out without injury.
The man has been identified in local news reports as Kenneth Robinson. According to WSOC-TV, firefighters pulled Robinson from the home and rushed him to Atrium Health Waxhaw, where he was pronounced deceased. The outlet reports that crews were called to the 600 block of Howie Mine Road around 4:30 a.m. after a neighbor phoned 911 about the fire, though QC News places the Waxhaw Fire Department's response at roughly 4:23 a.m., also following a neighbor's 911 call.
Officer Hurt Trying to Reach Victim
A police officer attempted to enter the burning home as part of the response and suffered minor injuries in the process, the station's report states. The officer was treated at a hospital and later released. A second person inside the home managed to escape without any injuries, per the same account.
The Waxhaw Police Department confirmed the man's death following the early-morning fire in a statement shared on Facebook. Investigators with the Union County Fire Marshal's Office later determined that a space heater caused the fire, the station's report notes.
No Working Smoke Alarm Found in the Home
The investigation also confirmed there was no working smoke alarm in the home, according to the same WSOC-TV report. That detail has become a focal point for fire officials, who are using the tragedy to push broader safety reminders as colder weather settles in across Union County.
Union County Fire Marshal Jon Williams urged residents to take basic precautions with portable heating equipment. “We urge everyone to keep space heaters at least three feet away from anything that can burn and make sure their homes have working smoke alarms,” Williams said, according to WSOC-TV.
Space Heaters a Persistent Seasonal Hazard
The warning echoes guidance posted on Union County's own fire-safety page, which notes that space heaters are usually involved in 25 percent of home heating fires, yet account for 74 percent of related deaths. A separate federal snapshot from the U.S. Fire Administration estimates a fire death rate of roughly 59.1 per 1,000 portable-heater fires in residential buildings, underscoring how disproportionately deadly these devices can be compared with other heating sources.
No additional details about Robinson's relationship to the second occupant who escaped, or that person's identity, have been released. The investigation into the fire's exact timeline remains tied to the conflicting early-morning reports, and officials have not indicated whether further updates are expected.
