Two deputies were shot. One of them died later at a hospital.

Then the shooting apparently stopped. Dorner found himself surrounded by police, who moved in and began to tear down the walls of the cabin.

"All right we're gonna go forward with the burn ... like we talked about," said a voice on a local police scanner frequency. "We have fire in the front, he might come out the back."

A single gunshot was heard from inside the cabin.

Had Dorner shot himself? Police will not yet say.

At about 6 p.m. local time, the cabin was engulfed in flames, as an American television audience watched live images beamed from news choppers.

The piercing sound of exploding ammunition was heard coming from inside the flaming cabin.

By 11 p.m. local time, authorities entered the smoldering remnants of the cabin to find charred human remains.

Is the body Dorner's? Probably. But police are taking no chances. They are waiting for an autopsy to make an announcement of the final determination.