A 58 year old Elkhart County woman was killed in a morning house fire.

The victim has been identified as Connie L. Morris.

Morris was the only one inside the home when the fire broke out. The home is located in the 28,000 block of Kehres Street.

A neighbor called 911 at 6:17 a.m. "I looked out the front window and I could see the orange, the glow," said neighbor Randy Mabry. "It was so hot I could barely stand out there in the street at that time, and then I watched the garage door melt down and the front door fall in, it just went up so fast."

Mabry and another neighbor ran around the yard looking for anyone who may have escaped. Mabry said the fire was too hot to bang on the windows or doors.

"At the time we arrived, went defensive on the fire due to the circumstances, as much fire as we had going at the time," said Cleveland Township Fire Department Assistant Chief Mike Graham. "It was confirmed later on that we did have at least one fatality inside the home."

The fire was so hot that the building was still smoldering shortly before 11:00 a.m. when the Elkhart County Coroner was called in and ruled that Morris died of smoke inhalation.

"I already told her we've got to unplug all the wax candles and everything before we leave the house," said Randy Mabry." The fire apparently turned some in the neighborhood into 'believers' where fire safety is concerned. "I mean, I just can't believe how fast that went up."

The Indiana State Fire Marshall's office is now involved in the search for an official cause. Preliminary information indicates that the fire was accidental and started in the garage.