Man dies in mobile home fire

The Sentinel-Record/Caitlin LaFarlette FATAL FIRE: The charred, gutted remains of a mobile home at 318 Skyview Terrace were all that were left Friday morning after a fire erupted inside around 10:30 p.m. Thursday. One resident, Junior Otwell, 68, died from injuries he received, while his wife and son reportedly escaped with the help of a neighbor.
The Sentinel-Record/Caitlin LaFarlette FATAL FIRE: The charred, gutted remains of a mobile home at 318 Skyview Terrace were all that were left Friday morning after a fire erupted inside around 10:30 p.m. Thursday. One resident, Junior Otwell, 68, died from injuries he received, while his wife and son reportedly escaped with the help of a neighbor.

A local man died late Thursday from injuries he received after a fire erupted in his single-wide mobile home, apparently caused by the victim smoking while using a portable oxygen machine.

Junior Otwell, 68, of 318 Skyview Terrace, was pronounced dead at the scene by Garland County Coroner Stuart Smedley, who said Friday "from all indications it appeared he was smoking while using oxygen and it exploded."

Firefighters from the Piney Fire Department and Hot Springs Fire Department responded to the scene because the portion of the trailer park where the fire occurred is partly in the city limits and partly in the county. The victim's home was reportedly located in the county area.

Piney Fire Chief Tim McDorman said his department received the fire call around 10:30 p.m. Thursday, and when firefighters arrived it was fully involved and was a complete loss. He said nine or 10 Piney firefighters responded, along with eight or nine HSFD personnel.

McDorman said there were two other people inside the trailer, in addition to the victim. All three got out, but the victim died after being brought out on the porch.

"It was a big fire," he said, noting it started in the living room area and confirmed it appeared the cause was the victim smoking near a portable oxygen machine. "It just kind of blew up," he said.

McDorman said it's "kind of a cluster" in that area because of the adjoining city and county properties and that there's always confusion about which agency should respond when an incident occurs there.

Hot Springs police Cpl. McCrary Means said patrol officers also responded to the scene to assist, but that Garland County sheriff's deputies handled the incident.

According to a GCSD report, Clay Adcox, 57, the maintenance man for the trailer park, who lived next door to the victim, stated he saw the window curtains on fire in the trailer, made entry and found the victim on fire.

He states he used water to put him out and then he forced the victim's wife, 65, and son, 40, out of the home as they were both "in a state of shock." Then he dragged the victim out of the home.

A maroon Ford F-150 pickup apparently belonging to the victim's next-door neighbor also caught fire and was burned all down the driver's side facing the victim's trailer.

A female neighbor said she never heard an explosion, but was awakened by the sound of sirens approaching and she and her husband went out to check. She said she saw the victim's wife walking around and noted, "She was a wreck."

She said there was a dog inside the neighboring trailer and firefighters broke out a window to get it out in case that trailer caught fire, too. "The fire had spread to the trees next to it so they got the dog out."

She said she was concerned about the fate of that dog and two small dogs belonging to the victims. "I hope they all get their dogs back and that they don't have to pay or anything," she said.

Tom Qualls, disaster program manager for the Southwest Territory of the American Red Cross Arkansas Region, said they responded to the scene and relocated the victim's wife and son to an area motel.

He said as far as he knew neither of them were injured and "we'll provide help for them."

Local on 03/28/2015

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