ORANGE — Officials have concluded that the cause of last Friday’s fire at 43 West Main St. that killed an Orange woman and injured another person was improper disposal of smoking material.
Another factor in the case was lack of working smoke and carbon monoxide alarms inside the home, according to State Fire Marshal Peter J. Ostroskey, whose office investigated in conjunction with Northwestern District Attorney David Sullivan, Orange Fire Chief James Young and Orange Police Chief Craig Lundgren.
Officials said the victim is believed to be an adult woman who lived in the home. Her identity will be released by the district attorney’s office after the state’s chief medical examiner makes formal identification.
The fire was reported at 8:25 a.m. that day. An unidentified man was able to escape the fire through a second floor window before the building collapsed.
Heavy equipment was brought in to remove the debris to recover the victim and investigate the fire, which started in the living room of the single-family home. The disabled woman was found near her recliner where she smoked, according to Ostroskey, who added that she was known to be a heavy smoker of Newport Non-menthol Gold 100s, and that there was abundant evidence of smoking materials surrounding the area.
“On behalf of the Orange Fire Department, I offer our deepest condolences to the family,” said Young. “This is a sad way to lose a loved one.”
Young said Orange has experienced too many fatal fires in the past few years, and in nearly every incident, the lack of working smoke alarms meant there was no early warning of the danger.
“I ask everyone to make sure they have working smoke alarms before going to bed tonight,” he said.
Anyone who needs assistance with getting a working smoke or carbon monoxide alarm should contact the Orange Fire Department at 978-544-3145.
“As we get our homes ready for winter, making sure we have working smoke alarms, with fresh batteries if they need them, and replacing any alarms over 10 years old, is crucial to protecting ourselves and our families from fire,” Ostroskey said. “With all the plastics and foams in today’s homes, we have only one to three minutes to escape a fire once the smoke alarm warns of danger, unlike the 12 to 15 minutes we had 30 or 40 years ago.”
The fire was investigated by members of the Orange fire and police departments and State Police assigned to both the Office of the State Fire Marshal and the Office of the Northwestern District Attorney. Assistance was received from State Police Crime Scene Services and the Code Compliance Unit of the Department of Fire Services.