State Says Bellingham House Fire Likely Accidental After Two Sisters Die

Overview

• Firefighters pulled Patricia Cronin, 68, and Elizabeth Emery, 75, from a Temi Road home and both later died at an area hospital after crews responded around 1 a.m. on Monday, June 15.
• State Fire Marshal Jon M. Davine and Bellingham Fire Chief William R. Miller said investigators do not consider the blaze suspicious and believe it most likely began accidentally in a first-floor bedroom, though the precise ignition source remains undetermined.
• Origin-and-cause work involved the Bellingham Fire Department, the State Fire Marshal’s Office and Massachusetts State Police fire investigators who continue forensic checks and await any medical determinations of cause or manner of death.
• Investigators found a 19-year-old smoke alarm in the basement, a badly damaged alarm on the first floor and no alarms on the second floor, a combination officials say likely reduced early warning for the two older occupants.
• State officials warned that people 65 and older account for more than half of this year’s fire deaths and urged homeowners to install working alarms on every level and in each bedroom and to replace units about every 10 years.