A man who was one of two people that died last week from what officials suspect was carbon monoxide poisoning in a Wade residence was caring and thoughtful, according to a neighbor.
Sixty-four-year-old Brian Marchant and Laurie Ridgway, 56, were found dead on Nov. 18 in a house owned by Marchant in the small Aroostook town. The furnace exhaust pipe inside the residence had been improperly installed and had become disconnected, causing exhaust fumes to vent directly into the home, according to the state fire marshal’s office.
Ridgway was new to the area, according to the neighbor, Brandon Little, and Washburn Town Manager Donna Turner. But Marchant was a well-known presence in the North Wade Road area where he lived.
“Laughing, joking, he was very caring, asking if you needed anything,” Little said. “[He would] randomly stop by and say, ‘Oh I’m headed into the store, you want me to grab you anything, you need me to pick something up for you?’ He was always just worried about other people.”
Marchant was retired, but previously worked as a teacher at Presque Isle High School and a substitute teacher in Caribou, Little said, adding he owned guitars, drums and other musical instruments. Posts on Marchant’s public Facebook profile show a passion for music, but Marchant had recently developed a new dream.
“He bought a cabin somewhere down the coast of Maine,” Little said. “He was going to live in the cabin, and he bought a separate property next to the cabin and he was going to turn it into a mini golf course.”
Marchant frequently went south this summer to work on the cabin while Little watched his Wade property, he said. Marchant told Little on Nov. 11 that he “had a new girlfriend.”
A week later, it was Little that conducted the welfare check on Marchant’s property after not having heard from him.
Accidental deaths caused by carbon monoxide poisoning are not uncommon in the U.S.
More than 400 people die in the country each year from the poisoning in situations not related to fires, according to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Just last year, two people died and two more were treated for carbon monoxide poisoning at a house in Freedom.
Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless gas produced by fuel-burning appliances, such as furnaces or boilers, and can build up indoors without proper venting. It reduces the body’s ability to carry oxygen by replacing oxygen in red blood cells, causing headache, weakness, dizziness, vomiting and confusion among other symptoms, and can quickly lead to loss of consciousness and death.
But the buildup of the gas can be prevented, Washburn Fire Chief Nate Allen said.
“Carbon monoxide poisoning is 100% preventable with the proper detectors, proper ventilation and equipment maintenance,” Allen said.
Allen, whose department responded to Wade residence last week, said people should have their heating systems inspected and maintained at least once a year. Carbon monoxide detectors and smoke alarms should also be installed on every level of a house and in each bedroom, he said.
If someone suspects there is a carbon monoxide leak in their home, they should immediately get out of the house and call 911, he said.
“Then your local fire department will come and test it to make sure that the house is clear of carbon monoxide,” Allen said.