FREDERICKTOWN — The Fredericktown firefighters who arrived on the scene of a mobile home fire at 42 Zent Ave. on Friday around 9:45 p.m. feared the man who lived alone in the trailer could still be inside the flaming structure.

“That’s always the first question; is somebody in there,” Fredericktown Fire Chief Scott Mast said.

Friday night, those fears were confirmed when the body of Richard Wolff, 45, was discovered just 4 feet inside the front door of his burning trailer.

Mast was first on the scene, followed by two Fredericktown engines and a rescue truck, a Fredericktown EMS squad and Fredericktown police officers.

“When I pulled up there was smoke pouring out of all sides of the structure and there were flames, so I asked a couple of neighbors if anyone was home, and they didn’t know,” Mast said.

Firefighters routinely check for vehicles in the driveway of a burning home, as an indication of whether or not someone may be inside. Wolff, his neighbors told Mast, did not own a vehicle.