November 23 – One man died and two Virginia police officers were injured, the result of an early morning garage apartment fire in Virginia. According to the Virginia Police Department, officers were called to the 100 block of 2nd Street North shortly before 5:00 A.M. after getting a report of a man threatening suicide and burning down a building. The officers attempted to make contact with the man but discovered that a garage apartment in the alley in the 100 block of 1st Street North was on fire with the man still inside. The police officers tried to persuade the man to leave,but were unsuccessful and the apartment became engulfed in heavy fire and smoke. Two Virginia police officers were transported by ambulance to the Virginia hospital. One officer suffered severe burns to multiple parts of his body while the other officer was treated for smoke inhalation and later released. The Virginia, Eveleth, Fayal Township, Gilbert, and Mountain Iron fire departments responded to the blaze while the Eveleth Ambulance provided medical standby and the St. Louis County Sheriff’s Department assisted in securing the fire scene. The cause of the fire remains under investigation by the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension and the Minnesota State Fire Marshal’s Office.
