NEW SHARON, Maine — A 34-year-old man died of burns he suffered in a fire inside his car Tuesday night believed to have been ignited by a cigarette while he was breathing fumes from an aerosol can, according to officials.
Casey Turner of New Sharon was inside his car parked in his driveway on Mercer Road when the fire broke out, said Department of Public Safety spokesman Stephen McCausland Wednesday in an email. Turner suffered severe burns to his face and hands, McCausland said, and he got out of the vehicle and walked to a neighbor’s house to call for help.
Turner was transported by ambulance to MaineGeneral Hospital in Augusta, then to Maine Medical Center, where he later died.
According to a later statement sent by McCausland, the fire likely started from fumes from an aerosol can that were ignited by a cigarette.
Turner, a smoker, was inhaling the fumes, known as huffing, and fire investigators located several empty aerosol cans in the vehicle. There was no damage to the vehicle.
The case remains under investigation. Turner’s death is the fourth fire-related death in the state this year.