EAST CLEVELAND, Ohio – Authorities say they found a resident buried in his basement late Wednesday afternoon, the victim of a fire that destroyed two homes and damaged another.
City officials said Leslie Hiller, 69, died in a blaze that began in his house in the 1600 block of Bryn Mawr Road about 4:30 a.m. Hiller was found in the area beneath his front porch.
The fire spread quickly to neighboring properties. Officers were at the scene through the afternoon, searching for him. Authorities found him about 5 p.m.
“He was a good man,” said Matthew Mills, who told cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer that Hiller adopted him when he was 8. “This was so unexpected. He cared about everyone. He cared about East Cleveland. He cared about people.”…