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Investigators release likely identity of victim in second fatal fire in Fort Fairfield in two days

Investigators release likely identity of victim in second fatal fire in Fort Fairfield in two days

Photo: clipart.com


FORT FAIRFIELD (WGAN) For the second time in two days, fire has claimed the life of a woman in Fort Fairfield, in Aroostook County.

The State Fire Marshal’s Office says they recovered a body from the rubble of a two-story home on Sam Everett Road early Wednesday morning. The blaze was reported just after 6 p.m. on Tuesday.

Investigators with the State Fire Marshal’s office said Wednesday afternoon they believe the victim was 39-year-old Hope Phillips. Her longtime boyfriend Jeffrey Chasse, who lived in the home, wasn’t there when the fire first broke out but returned as crews were battling the flames that ended up destroying the home.

Authorities were still waiting on a positive ID on the victim as of Wednesday afternoon.

The couple’s two dogs were also killed in the blaze.

Crews used an excavator to dig through the rubble left behind, but have yet to determine the cause of the fire.

It follows a fire that took the life of 90-year-old Dawn Findlen, whose home on Densmore Road in Fort Fairfield was burnt to the ground early Monday morning. Investigators say they don’t believe the two fires are connected.

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