Officials: Person found dead in Virginia apartment fire

By The Associated Press
May 8, 2020 | 5:09 PM

ROANOKE, Va. (AP) — Firefighters have found the body of a person inside an apartment in Virginia.

Roanoke Fire-EMS said in a news release that first responders were sent to the 2300 block of Tuckawana Circle at around 2:15 a.m. on Friday.

According to a news release, the first responders found smoke and heat damage in a second-floor apartment, where they also found a person who had died. Officials said the fire was already out when crews arrived.

The medical examiner will investigate the cause of death. Firefighters said the identity of the victim will not be released until identification is made family is notified.

Va. health dept. improves nursing home inspection backlog, reforms sanction criteria for facilities

By Virginia Mercury
August 22, 2026 | 8:37 PM

Stories of neglect in care or unsanitary living situations have plagued several of Virginia’s nursing home facilities in recent years and data backs up a lapse in oversight by state agencies. With reform efforts underway, the Virginia Department of Health officials said they aim to adopt sanction criteria by the end of the year to rein in bad actors and get troubled facilities back on track. As of July, 58% of Virginia’s nursing homes were overdue for inspections and 68 of Virginia’s 289 nursing homes were found to have serious deficiencies, according to ProPublica. Several of the state’s flagged facilities with numerous deficiencies also had high staffing turnover rates. The issue has been salient among various healthcare spaces, including VDH.

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