Man found dead in Carmel strip mall fire identified

Update: The man killed in the fire was identified as 68-year-old John Michael Jackson by the Hamilton County Coroner's Office.

CARMEL, Ind. — Fire and police are investigating a deadly blaze at a Carmel strip mall.

Fire crews were dispatched about 3:20 a.m. to the Michigan Road Shoppes strip mall in the 9800 block of Michigan Road north of 465. The initial call was for a welfare check spurred by a woman yelling for help in the street, said Carmel Fire Department public information officer Tim Griffin.

“When we were dispatched from a mile out we could already see the smoke,” Griffin said.

Firefighters found the strip mall fully engulfed on one end. Sunny's Place massage parlor and Jacquie's Gourmet Cafe sustained damage.

Firefighters searching the building found a man dead inside. His age and identity have not been released. The woman firefighters first encountered suffered burns. Both victims appear to be connected to the massage parlor.

Jacqueline Bols, owner of the cafe and catering company, said the blaze shut down her "whole operation." Her business, which has been at the Michigan Road location for 15 years, will temporarily move to the Palomino Ballroom in Zionsville.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

Michigan Road between 96th and 99th streets was reopened to traffic about 8:40 a.m. after being closed for several hours.

This article will update.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Carmel strip mall fire: John Michael Jackson, 68, identified