May 23, 2012
KNOX COUNTY, Tenn. (WVLT) -- One person died when the recreational vehicle in which he was staying caught fire Tuesday morning. Rural Metro said the R.V. was parked next to a home on E. Racoon Valley Drive around 7:19 a.m.
Dispatchers said 72-year-old Jimmy Kelley's son tried to pull him from the burning vehicle, but his father passed away before help arrived.
The case has been turned over to the Knox County Fire Investigation Unit and the Knox County Medical Examiner.
"The gentleman bought his dad a trailer so he could be next to him and then this happened," said neighbor, Stacie Hirsh.
Kelley's son ran inside the burning camper, pulled his father out, but it was too late. Kelley died before help got there.
"I heard a possible explosion and then, I heard like different types of ammunition going off, that's what aroused my attention," said neighbor Randy Debord.
Investigators are still trying to figure out what caused the fire.
