Three police officers responded to the scene and pulled the woman's body from the house.
HOPEWELL TWP-- An 85-year-old woman who used a medical alert device to call for help in a house fire, couldn't escape and died before police responding to the scene could rescue her, according to a statement from the police department.
The woman was identified as Patricia Gennett, the widow of a former Burlington County fire chief. Her dog also died in the blaze, police said.
Three police officers, William Gaskill, Vincent Amabile and James Klesney, responded to the scene at Gennett's house on 46 Coleman Lane around 10:15 p.m. Friday. Gennett, who had a medical alert button, had pushed the button and told a dispatcher that her house was on fire, according to the Mercer County Prosecutor's Office.
The officers broke down a door of the house but flames and heavy smoke prevented them from getting inside at first, the statement said.
When they were able to enter the home, the officers found Gennett's body on the first floor and pulled her oustide, the statement said. She was the only person in the house.
The Union Fire Company, Pennington Fire Company, Hopewell Fire Department and others from New Jersey and Pennsylvania responded to the blaze and shut down Coleman Lane and a section of Route 29 Friday night.
Firefighters and the Mercer County Prosecutor's Office were investigating the fire Saturday morning.
Gennett was on oxygen and had been a smoker, but prosecutors said they did not know whether either of those contributed to the fire.
Anna Merriman may be reached at amerriman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @anna_merriman