Mother, son die in Grosse Tete fire

An 84-year-old woman and her 69-year-old son died in a fire at their Grosse Tete residence early Tuesday morning, officials said.

Maj. Johnny Blanchard of the Iberville Sheriff's Office identified the victims as Margaret H. Scott and Joseph E. Scott of 17725 Locust Street.

Grosse Tete/Rosedale Fire Chief Mike Hughes said his department  received the call at 3:30 a.m. from a caller who said the fire, which started in the kitchen, had already burned through the roof of the house.

The state Fire Marshal's office said the two apparently died of smoke inhalation, Hughes said.

Major Blanchard said the preliminary finding is that the fire was caused by an electrical problem. He said sheriff's detectives at the scene reported no indication of arson.

Louisiana State Fire Marshal H. “Butch” Browning said in a news release the volunteer firefighters arrived within seven minutes of the call to find the entire home in flames. They quickly extinguished the fire and made entry to try to rescue the occupants, who were found dead at the scene, he said.

Browning said investigators are evaluating the home's electrical system to see if any failure occurred. A lab test will provide additional information.

There were no working smoke detectors in this home, the marshal  said.