Accelerant used in fatal Grants Pass house fire

Grants Pass, Ore. — A house fire in Grants Pass claims the life of a 71-year-old woman, in the Rural Metro Fire Department’s first fatal fire in the last five years. It happened on the 200 block of Gordon way,  just before 3 PM Sunday afternoon.

Multiple neighbors saw the smoke, and heard screams from inside the house. Gilbert Peacock, along with others, went inside the to save the homeowner Lorina Maupin, but it was too late.

“I wasn’t thinking anything, I thought, I got to get her out,” Peacock said. “We got down on our hands and knees on the floor, and went as far as we could, and then we had to turn around and come back out.”

Fire crews with the Rural Metro Fire Department arrived shortly after, and were told a resident was still inside.

“They moved inside, and were able to located the victim inside the home, were able to get the victim outside the home, and i think resuscitation efforts were briefly initiated,” Mike Shaw said, a Fire Marshall with the department.

Maupin was pronouced deceased on the scene. Family members NBC5 News spoke with said Maupin frequently used a liquid accelerant  to start fires in her wood stove, and to warm them up. They said they often hid the accelerant from her, and told her repeatedly not to use it.

“We would discourage anybody from using flammable liquids, gasoline, kerosene, whatever it is to one, either start a fire in their fireplace or wood stove, or attempt to get it going hotter,” Shaw said. “The outcome can be quite deadly.”

The investigation into what happened is still ongoing, however the accelerant is being considered a factor.

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