Crime & Safety
Lake County, IN Fire: 34-Year-Old Man Dies of Smoke Inhalation
Hobart, IN – A 34 year old man who died following an apartment fire in northwest Indiana has been identified by the Lake County Coroner's Office, with forensic investigators confirming smoke inhalatio
By Mason Reid · 2026-11-01T21:04:21.815Z
Hobart, IN – A 34 year old man who died following an apartment fire in northwest Indiana has been identified by the Lake County Coroner's Office, with forensic investigators confirming smoke inhalation as the preliminary cause of death.
According to an official press release from the Lake County Coroner's Office, Jimmy Jones, 34, of Hobart, was pronounced dead at 9:36 p.m. Monday, Oct. 26, at St. Mary Medical Center's emergency department in Hobart.
The coroner's Medicolegal Death Investigation Team was notified two minutes later, at 9:38 p.m., and dispatched to the hospital.
Fatal Fire Reported at Hobart Apartment Complex Authorities identified the location of the incident as Hampshire Park Apartments, located at 400 N. Lake Park Ave. in Hobart, a Lake County community southeast of Gary in the Chicago metropolitan area.
The Hobart Fire Department and Hobart Police Department were among the agencies involved in responding to the incident.
The Indiana Department of Homeland Security's Fire Marshal also participated in the investigation, according to the coroner's release.
Autopsy Confirms Smoke Inhalation A forensic autopsy was conducted Tuesday, Oct. 27, at the Lake County Forensic Science Center in Crown Point.
Investigators determined Jones' preliminary cause of death was smoke inhalation resulting from a residential fire.
The coroner classified the manner of death as accidental.
Jones was positively identified by family members.
The official release did not specify what started the fire, how extensively the apartment building was damaged or whether other residents were displaced.
Additional details about the circumstances surrounding the fire were not provided.
The findings confirm that the fatality was associated with smoke inhalation, rather than a separately reported injury.
The Lake County Coroner's Office has not provided further information regarding the origin or cause of the blaze.