The driver found dead in a burned vehicle near Circle last month had crashed prior to the fire, according to state officials.
Alaska State Troopers said in an online dispatch Wednesday that 73-year-old Fairbanks resident Richard Doran was the man found dead Dec. 7 near Mile 155 of the Steese Highway. Troopers said the vehicle had driven into a ditch and received minor damage, prior to a fire that destroyed it.
"Richard was driving his 2003 Dodge truck on (Dec. 7) when the vehicle left the roadway and caught fire," troopers wrote.
Troopers responded to the still-smoldering vehicle after being informed of the wreck around 5:15 p.m. that evening. Doran's body wasn't identified until it was sent to the State Medical Examiner Office in Anchorage for an autopsy.
According to troopers spokesperson Megan Peters, no foul play is suspected in the vehicle fire, which began in the Dodge's engine compartment. Troopers don't yet have word on the exact cause of both the fire and Doran's death.
"We're still waiting on final autopsy (results) to determine cause of death," Peters said. "When you have a fire that burns everything so completely, it destroys all sorts of clues about what happened."