VIDEO: Greenfield police and fire departments, along with the Milwaukee Fire Department, responded to the single-family home in the 4600 block of South 45th Street at 1:26 p.m. after a caller reported being unable to make contact with the resident and detecting a chemical-type odor. Emergency personnel entered the home, where they found the man deceased in a bedroom. The fire was contained to that same bedroom and had extinguished itself by the time crews arrived.
“To have [crews] all right in front of your house gets a little crazy,” said Michael Myers, a neighbor who watched the large police and fire department presence block off the entire roadway for most of Sunday.
The Milwaukee Fire Department hazmat team responded to the scene. No other individuals were found in the residence, and no police or fire personnel were injured during the response.
Sterling Cruz, who lives next door, said the discovery was surprising. “We didn’t know really what the cause was for his passing. So for us to hear that there was a suspicious smell coming from that area, I mean, it was surprising, but it kind of, you know, opened our eyes a little bit,” Cruz said. Neighbors described the deceased man as quiet and someone who kept to himself. Cruz said he last saw him right before Christmas Eve.
