Man Dies in Smyrna House Fire

SMRYNA, GA -- A man died in a massive house fire in Cobb County in Sunday, police said.

Police have not released the man's name who died in the blaze, which occurred about 12:30 p.m. Sunday at a residence in the 1500 block of Old Concord Road in Smyrna.

The man's body was found near the front door, according to local news reports.

Neighbors in the community near Dobbins Air Reserve Base heard loud booms before seeing the fire, according to news reports. Cobb County firefighters searched the property for other victims in the blaze, but found none, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

“I told my mother it sounded like a big job dumpster being slammed to the ground," neighbor William Gibsontold WAGA-TV. "We heard a second boom and it just shook the whole house. The whole house was just engulfed. It was like a tinder box--it just ... it was bad. It was really bad."

"Just to start the year off like this; it's real sad," neighbor Henry McMillan told WSB-TV. McMillan called the victim "a great guy," and said that he'd see the man every now and then and wave.

Fire officials still don't know what caused the fire, but investigators found two kerosene tanks, WSB reported.

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