NATCHEZ — After an initial investigation, State Fire Marshal investigators think that a fatal Sunday night house fire in the Morgantown neighborhood was accidental.

It is believed that the fire started from an electrical issue in the kitchen wall behind the stove and spread throughout the home, according to the State Fire Marshal’s office.

The fire took the life of Dr. Ruby As-Sabor who retired in December 2021 after working at the Natchez Adams School District central office building on Homochitto Street as director of exceptional services for seven years.

Firefighters were dispatched to her home at 128 Brookfield Drive just before 11 p.m. and continued fighting the flames until the wee hours of the morning on Monday.

Natchez Fire Chief Robert Arrington said he is still waiting on a full report from the State Fire Marshals office and had not heard anything from them yet as of Thursday afternoon.

“We will call them in the morning (Friday) and see where they are,” he said. “The way I understand the process works is they have an initial report of what they think may have started it after their initial investigation and then will do a more thorough sweep and give us a full report when the investigation is complete. I’ve been told that process can take around 45 days.”