Body found at Waterville fire site

WATERVILLE – Six days after a structure fire destroyed a building on April 16, in the 100 block of E. Locust St. and caused the temporary closure of U.S. 2, Douglas County officials discovered a body in the debris believed to be the property’s owner.

Last Wednesday, April 22, Douglas County detectives, coroner and fire marshal re-entered the structure to conduct a search and try to determine the cause of the fire. With the help of heavy equipment, searchers found the body of one deceased subject believed to be the property owner, 87-year-old Ray D. Kope of Waterville.

“The Douglas County Coroner will work to confirm the identity,” said Douglas County Undersheriff Tyler Caille in a media release. “The Douglas County Fire Marshal has concluded his investigation work at the scene and determined the cause of the fire to be accidental.”

Douglas County deputies responded to the fire at approximately 7:07 p.m. on April 16, to find Douglas County Fire District No. 1 personnel on the scene of the fully involved fire. A second alarm brought units from neighboring Chelan and Douglas County fire districts.

Washington State Patrol troopers responded to assist in traffic control. The compromised condition of the burned building compelled WSDOT to re-route vehicle traffic on US 2 via a detour.

On April 21 Chelan County Volunteer Search and Rescue with a K-9 cadaver-trained dog combined with members of a Unified Command Team to assist in the search for the missing person.

“Due to the amount and size of the debris, heavy equipment had to be mobilized to the scene to assist with further search efforts,” Caille said.