Woman, 80, killed in Bellevue condo fire

BELLEVUE — An 80-year-old woman who was burned in a fire at her condo in Bellevue has died at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle.

Lt. Eric Keenan says firefighters responding to an automatic alarm about 2:30 a.m. today found her unconscious near the door of the smoke-filled condo where she lived alone. Residents of 35 other units were evacuated until the smoke was cleared.

Keenan says the fire started in a chair, possibly in a heating pad. although the cause has not been officially determined.

Keenan says a smoke detector in the condo was sitting on a desk with the battery installed backward. He says the alarm was triggered by a smoke detector in the hall.