Orillia OPP have identified the person who was killed in a Saturday morning house fire in Oro-Medonte Township.
Const. Scott Williams said the victim has been identified as Allan Walsh, 53. He lived in the home on Line 9 North, near Moonstone Road, by himself.
Officials have determined the fire was not suspicious, said Williams, who could provide no other details about the blaze.
Oro-Medonte Township firefighters were dispatched to the home Saturday morning after a passerby saw smoke coming from the residence.
Oro-Medonte Fire Chief Hugh Murray said firefighters from Moonstone and Warminster stations responded, at around 10:20 a.m., with tankers from Horseshoe Valley and Rugby.
When they arrived, they found a "fully involved structure fire," said Murray.
While fighting the fire, a body was discovered. As a result, the OPP and the Ontario Fire Marshal (OFM) were called in to investigate.
Four officials from the OFM office were on scene Saturday and Sunday.
Jeff Tebby, operations manager for the OFM, said "the scene investigation" concluded Sunday evening.
He said the cause of the blaze has not been determined and said the investigation is ongoing. He said samples of debris and other materials from the fire have been sent to Toronto for testing but results will likely not be available for six to eight weeks.
Tebby could not say, definitively, if working smoke alarms were in the home because of the extent of the damage.
Tebby noted the OFM brought in heavy equipment to remove a part of the metal roof from a portion of the approximately 1,000-square-foot home. Officials sifted through all the debris and also checked appliances and heating sources.
The home is a "total loss", noted Murray, who estimated the damages at about $200,000.
