Man Dies in Early Morning Fire in Bethel, Maine

The State Fire Marshal’s Office says 39-year-old Joshua Piawlock has died following a house fire early Wednesday morning in the western Maine town of Bethel.  Two others, a woman and a young man, escaped with minor injuries.

According to the Maine Public Safety Department, the fire was reported at 4:40 a.m Wednesday at a single family house on Elm Street. Bethel Firefighters said the house was engulfed in flames when they arrived.

Fire Investigators said the cause of the fire was electrical wiring in a wall on the first floor.  The fire was discovered by Piawlock’s long term girlfriend 52-year-old, Lucinda Bilodeau.  She escaped through a first floor door. Their 18-year-old son Eric escaped from the second floor by crawling out a window and onto a porch roof. Both suffered minor smoke inhalation and Bilodeau was treated for minor burns.

The fire gutted the two story house on Elm Street in the center of town.  Investigators said there is no indication the smoke detectors in the house were working.