Woman Found Dead in Middle Of Kitchen Fire

An elderly woman was found dead amid smoke and flames last night in the kitchen of her Northeast Washington rowhouse.

Food was found burning on the stove of the house in the 200 block of 34th Street NE, and it was not immediately clear whether the woman had died from smoke inhalation or whether she had suffered a medical emergency that left her unable to attend to the stove.

A smoke alarm signaled the blaze about 6:30 p.m., and arriving firefighters found what was described as "light to moderate" smoke in the woman's kitchen.

The woman, who was dead when firefighters found her, was on the floor, leaning against the stove.

As of late last night, she had not been officially identified.

But neighbors said her name was Helen Ligon and described knowing her for as long as 50 years. They described her as a widow "who knew everything and everybody."

She accepted mail and packages for neighbors who were not home and "was really a nice lady," said neighbor Cheryl Brown.