Police: White Plains Woman Died Of Smoke Inhalation

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. – Alice Foster died of smoke inhalation during a fire Jan. 4 in her fourth-floor apartment in the Winbrook Housing Complex, Detective Lt. Eric Fischer said.

The fire has been determined to be accidental, but no official cause has been found, Fischer said. The cause is still being investigated, but preliminary reports indicate the 78-year-old tenant was smoking in her back bedroom when the fire began shortly before noon.

Foster's apartment was the only one damaged by the fire, which was extinguished within minutes. However, the apartments directly above and below had some water and smoke damage. No residents were displaced by the fire, Public Safety Commissioner David Chong said.

Foster was found under a large pile of debris and clothes during a secondary search of the the apartment, after the fire was extinguished. She was dead when they found her. 

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