Man dies in early morning apartment fire in Paintsville

By Roberta Cantrell
BSN Editor

A Johnson County man has been named in a fatal apartment fire on Elm Street in Paintsville, Thursday, April 10. Arthur E. “Arty” Castle, 50, was found by first responders who say there were no signs of life after they entered Apartment C.

Firefighters were dispatched to that apartment on Elm Street at around 4:40 a.m., after a neighbor in the next unit called to report smelling smoke.

When they arrived, smoke was coming from one of the units.

“We went ahead and established water supply with the secondary arriving units made interior to the structure,” said Cpt. Ben Cook with the Paintsville Fire Department.

“We did have to force the door to the apartment. It was locked. We then located a male that was down. It’s still under investigation what the cause of him being deceased is,” said Cook. “After it was determined there were no signs of life, we did do a quick knockdown of the fire to contain it. The coroner was notified, and we were able to remove the body and he was sent to Frankfort for an autopsy.”

The fire was contained to the kitchen area of the unit. “Had a window cracked or a door been ajar and oxygen coming into that fire, it could have spread very quickly,” said Cook.

According to his obit, he was the son of Arthur and Julia Burks Castle. Additional survivors include a son, Elijah Castle; a daughter, Piper Moore; and a sister, Alice Ward.

Funeral services were Monday, April 14, at Jones-Preston Funeral Chapel with James Kelly Caudill officiating. Burial was in the Castle Family Cemetery, Nippa.

The family requests donations to Jones-Preston Funeral Home to help defray funeral expenses by contacting Jones-Preston Funeral Home at 606-789-3501.