A 52-year-old man was killed in a fire early Saturday morning at a mobile home park on Dana Avenue in Kittery.
Kittery Fire Chief David O’Brien said the mobile home at 12 Balsam Lane was engulfed in flames when firefighters arrived at the scene after neighbors in the mobile home park reported the fire about 4 a.m.
The man who died in the fire was Shaun Flaherty Jr., who lived alone, said Stephen McCausland, spokesman for the State Fire Marshal’s Office.
“Investigators said the cause of the fire could not be determined because of the severe damage to the home,” McCausland said in a statement Saturday evening.
He said it was the fourth fire death in Maine so far this year.
O’Brien said the fire appeared to have started in the kitchen and living room area of the home, which was about 60 feet long. Flaherty’s body was found in a bedroom by firefighters who entered the home after it was safe.
About 20 firefighters contained the blaze and worked to keep the fire from spreading to other homes.
O’Brien said occupants of nearby mobile homes were temporarily evacuated until the danger had passed. Some of the siding on nearby homes buckled from the heat of the blaze.
Mutual aid was provided by fire departments from surrounding communities.
The fire department extinguished the blaze and returned to the station at about 9:15 a.m.
Comments are not available on this story. Read more about why we allow commenting on some stories and not on others.
We believe it's important to offer commenting on certain stories as a benefit to our readers. At its best, our comments sections can be a productive platform for readers to engage with our journalism, offer thoughts on coverage and issues, and drive conversation in a respectful, solutions-based way. It's a form of open discourse that can be useful to our community, public officials, journalists and others.
We do not enable comments on everything — exceptions include most crime stories, and coverage involving personal tragedy or sensitive issues that invite personal attacks instead of thoughtful discussion.
You can read more here about our commenting policy and terms of use. More information is also found on our FAQs.
Show less