Woman burns after stove ignites

DENNYSVILLE (AP) – An elderly woman died of burns after using gasoline to ignite the wood stove in her home in this eastern Maine town, authorities said Monday.

Jean Sprague, 83, died Sunday night at Maine Medical Center in Portland, where she had been flown by helicopter.

Sprague poured gasoline from a gas can into the wood stove in her living room Saturday night in order to burn green firewood that was recently cut, the state fire marshal’s office said. The fuel exploded and the woman’s clothing caught fire.

Sprague, who was able to put out the blaze and call for help, was transported by ambulance to a hospital in Calais before being transferred to Maine Medical Center.

The fire marshal’s office said no one should ever use a flammable liquid to start a fire in a wood stove or fireplace. Officials also cautioned against using green firewood, which is difficult to burn and can lead to a dangerous buildup of creosote in chimneys and stove pipes.