A woman rescued from her burning trailer in Skowhegan Friday night remained in critical condition Sunday at a Portland hospital, and her 4-year-old son, who also was rescued, is improving at a Boston hospital, according to a family member.

Andrea Curtis, 24, of 279 North Ave., Skowhegan, has been at Maine Medical Center in Portland and her son, Tyler Curtis-Benson, has been at Shriners Hospital for Children in Boston since they were pulled from their older mobile home just before 8:30 p.m. Friday by Skowhegan police Officer Tim Williams.

A Maine Medical Center spokeswoman said at 12:35 p.m. Sunday that Curtis remains in critical condition. A Shriners Hospital spokesperson said Saturday that no information about Tyler would be available until Monday.

But Curtis’ cousin, Lindsay Sadler-Simpson, said Sunday that Tyler is improving, and family members are with the victims at both hospitals.

Curtis, a full-time student at University of Maine at Farmington, is studying education and plans to become a teacher when she graduates in the spring, according to Sadler-Simpson, who said she and Curtis were childhood best friends when Curtis was growing up in Wellington.

“Andrea is an amazing mom, a college student close to graduation, and her number one priority is her son,” Sadler-Simpson said in a Facebook message to a Morning Sentinel reporter.

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She said a gofundmepage has been set up for Curtis and her family, as they lost everything in the fire that destroyed their mobile home. Curtis’ husband, Tyler’s step-father, Brian Armstrong, was at work when the fire broke out Friday night.

“The only thing we know is that she is in critical condition, and we love her and are praying for her all day every day,” Sadler-Simpson said.

She said Curtis and her family had saved to buy the mobile home and had just bought it, but it was not insured. She asked that people wanting to donate items drop them off at 8 Middle Road, Skowhegan, or 9 Harmony Road, Wellington.

“They need everything, and they are starting over,” she said.

Meanwhile, Skowhegan fire Captain Rick Caldwell said Sunday that fire investigators have not yet determined the cause of the fire, nor has it been determined whether there were smoke detectors in the home and if so, whether they were working.

“There are still more loose ends to try to get together here,” Caldwell said.

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Sgt. Joel Davis and senior fire investigator Stu Jacobs of the state fire marshal’s office worked at the scene Friday night and Saturday, trying to determine where and how the fire started. Neighbors said they heard a loud boom just before 8:30 p.m. and then heard Curtis yelling for help from a window that appeared to be in a bedroom.

Williams, the police officer, was the first to arrive on the scene and pulled Curtis and her son out of the burning trailer, Skowhegan fire Chief Shawn Howard said Saturday.

Caldwell said firefighters arrived at the scene just as Williams was pulling one of the victims out and searched to make sure no one else was in the burning mobile home. They heard a dog yelping inside, and it sounded much like a person, he said. At one point the canine was pulled out of the trailer but quickly charged back in, according to Caldwell.

“Obviously, he was trying to find his family,” he said. “It was a bit sad.”

The dog came back out of the trailer and ran off but ultimately was located and taken to an animal hospital in Lewiston.

A woman who answered the phone at Animal Emergency Clinic of Mid-Maine in Lewiston at 2:10 p.m. Sunday said she could not release any information about the dog at that time.

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Meanwhile, Caldwell praised the work of Williams and said he and firefighters and other emergency workers labored very hard under difficult conditions that night.

“What he did was awesome, and thank God there wasn’t anyone else in there,” Caldwell said.

Amy Calder — 861-9247

acalder@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @AmyCalder17

 


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