HOULTON, Maine — A Houlton man died Saturday when fire swept through his Columbia Street home.
The body of Duane Knapp, 53, was recovered by Houlton firefighters who responded to the fire around 3 p.m. on Feb. 2. The two-story home was gutted by fire. No one else was hurt in the blaze.
Tim Lowell, an investigator with the state fire marshal’s office, said Tuesday that they believe the fire started in the living room of the home, near an overstuffed chair.
“Two ignition sources were identified — smoking materials and an electrical circuit,” he said. “But we weren’t able to differentiate between the two as to which one was the specific ignition source.”
Cause of death was determined to be smoke inhalation.
“The victim succumbed to the smoke and lack of oxygen in the environment,” said Lowell. “Rather than being killed by fire, he was overcome by smoke and the fire ensued.”
Neighbors spotted the smoke and when fire crews arrived flames were spreading rapidly.
“When we arrived the structure was totally involved,” said Leland Cyr, deputy chief of the Houlton Fire Department. “Fire was coming out of everywhere.”
Lowell said a build-up of smoke caused flames to spread quickly.
“Just as the smoke was seen, the glass in the front windows failed, introducing oxygen to the fire,” explained Lowell. “There was a build-up of smoke in the building, and when oxygen was introduced to the environment everything reached an ignition temperature very rapidly. That is why people observed a rapid fire spread.”
Twenty-six firefighters from Houlton responded to the scene and mutual aid from Hodgdon Fire Department supplied about 10 additional firefighters. Crews worked into the evening, clearing the scene around 7 p.m. and then returning during the early morning hours Sunday to subdue several hot spots.
Knapp, a meat cutter at a local grocery store, lived alone. His death marked the second fire death in Maine over the weekend: a 93-year-old Palermo man died earlier on Saturday when fire swept his farmhouse. This is the second fire death in southern Aroostook in less than a month. On Jan. 17, 59-year-old Edwin Connelly Jr. of Amity died when his Williams Road trailer burned to the ground.
The body of Duane Knapp, 53, was recovered by Houlton firefighters who responded to the fire around 3 p.m. on Feb. 2. The two-story home was gutted by fire. No one else was hurt in the blaze.
Tim Lowell, an investigator with the state fire marshal’s office, said Tuesday that they believe the fire started in the living room of the home, near an overstuffed chair.
“Two ignition sources were identified — smoking materials and an electrical circuit,” he said. “But we weren’t able to differentiate between the two as to which one was the specific ignition source.”
Cause of death was determined to be smoke inhalation.
“The victim succumbed to the smoke and lack of oxygen in the environment,” said Lowell. “Rather than being killed by fire, he was overcome by smoke and the fire ensued.”
Neighbors spotted the smoke and when fire crews arrived flames were spreading rapidly.
“When we arrived the structure was totally involved,” said Leland Cyr, deputy chief of the Houlton Fire Department. “Fire was coming out of everywhere.”
Lowell said a build-up of smoke caused flames to spread quickly.
“Just as the smoke was seen, the glass in the front windows failed, introducing oxygen to the fire,” explained Lowell. “There was a build-up of smoke in the building, and when oxygen was introduced to the environment everything reached an ignition temperature very rapidly. That is why people observed a rapid fire spread.”
Twenty-six firefighters from Houlton responded to the scene and mutual aid from Hodgdon Fire Department supplied about 10 additional firefighters. Crews worked into the evening, clearing the scene around 7 p.m. and then returning during the early morning hours Sunday to subdue several hot spots.
Knapp, a meat cutter at a local grocery store, lived alone. His death marked the second fire death in Maine over the weekend: a 93-year-old Palermo man died earlier on Saturday when fire swept his farmhouse. This is the second fire death in southern Aroostook in less than a month. On Jan. 17, 59-year-old Edwin Connelly Jr. of Amity died when his Williams Road trailer burned to the ground.
