A fire at Saratoga West Mobile Home Park in the Town of Milton claimed the life of a 61-year-old man on Wednesday, June 29.
According to State Police reports, around 7:45 a.m. a state trooper smelled smoke while conducting a traffic stop of a vehicle and after searching for the origin, discovered a mobile home fully engulfed by flames in Saratoga West Mobile Home Park off Rowland Street. The trooper called for help and after neighbors told him the resident may still be inside, made repeated attempts to enter the home in the front and back of the residence, said police. The trooper was unable to access it due to extreme heat and thick smoke, according to police reports.
Fire departments from the Town of Milton, Ballston Spa and Malta were dispatched and responded to the mobile home and after the fire was extinguished, the body the resident, David W. Connell, 61, was discovered in the utility room of the residence, according to police reports.
Neighbors told police that Connell had difficulty walking and usually used canes or crutches.
The cause of the fire is under investigation by the Saratoga County Fire Investigators and State Police.`