St. Paul apartment fire causes first fire-related fatality of 2022

ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - One person has died as the result of an apartment fire, according to the St. Paul Fire Department.

St. Paul firefighters responded to a fire at the Johnson Parkway Apartments on the 1300 block of Ames Avenue East at around 2:15 p.m. Tuesday.

On Wednesday, the Ramsey County Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed that James E. Sparks, 73, of St. Paul, became the city’s first fire fatality of the year.

Investigators have determined the likely cause of the fire was from smoking materials, and there are no signs it was intentional. Officials remain unsure whether functioning smoke detectors were available.

One apartment unit was damaged in the process, but the fire has since been contained and extinguished. 

All occupants were able to return to their units, and no residents have been displaced except those in the unit of the fire’s origin.