Body Found Inside Burning Van

Firefighters who extinguished a burning GTE Northwest utility van Sunday at a recycling center found a body inside.

State police arson investigators were called to the scene. It appears the fire was set as part of a suicide, Clackamas County sheriff’s Deputy Damon Coates said.

The body was badly burned, Coates said. An attempt will be made Monday to confirm the identity of the body using dental records.

The locked gates had been broken open at the Mount Hood Disposal Center, a recycling center about a mile off U.S. Highway 26. The burning van was found inside the gates, Coates said.

The van had not been reported stolen. GTE Northwest was helping authorities determine to whom the van was assigned, Coates said.