The NASCAR community is dealing with yet more tragic news after officials confirmed the death of Denny Hamlin's father, Dennis, aged 75.

Whilst officials did not initially disclose names when confirming the incident at the property owned by the NASCAR star, an official statement from Gaston County Emergency Management and Fire Services has now identified his parents, Dennis and Mary Lou Hamlin, as the two individuals who suffered injuries from the blaze, with the former sadly having succumbed to his injuries.

"Firefighters were dispatched at 6:19 p.m. and arrived at 1137 Blacksnake Road at 6:27 p.m. to find a two-story home mostly engulfed, with flames showing through the entire attic," the officials said.

"Outside the home were the residents, Dennis Hamlin, 75, and Mary Lou Hamlin, 69, who both suffered catastrophic injuries while escaping the flames. Gaston County Emergency Medical Services (GEMS) transported Dennis and Mary Lou to CaroMont Regional Medical Center."

"Dennis later died from his injuries at the hospital. Mary Lou was transferred to Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist Burn Center in Winston-Salem, where she is actively being treated."

What caused the fire?

At this stage, there has been no confirmation as to the cause of the blaze at the Hamlin's home.

Officials say that this is due to the extent of the fire damage to the property and the resulting structural collapse.

However, officials also confirmed that the investigation is ongoing, so it seems likely that once a cause is found, all will be revealed to the public.

One thing we do know that made the fire extra difficult to contend with was the lack of fire hydrants in the area.

Speaking after the fire had been brought under control, Chief David Toomey of the Lucia Riverbend Fire Department told WSOC-TV: “Well, this house was about 40-45% involved when we got here.

"Of course, where we are located, there are no hydrants, so all the water had to be trucked in, and there were times we would run out of water and we had to wait for more water to get here.

"We had to call for more, additional tankers throughout the county.”