CHINA — A local man is dead following a house fire early Sunday morning in China.

The body of Randall Luck, 65, who lived alone at 13 Washington Boulevard, on Three Mile Pond, was found by firefighters outside his burning home, according to Steve McCausland, spokesman for the Maine Department of Public Safety.

The fire was discovered by a plow truck operator shortly after 1 a.m., according to a news release Sunday morning from McCausland. The single-family home is on Washington Boulevard, which is off Mayflower Lane, which, in turn, is off Route 3.

The yellow home was destroyed in the blaze.

Luck’s body was examined Sunday by the state Office of Chief Medical Examiner, but additional testing is planned before determining the cause of his death.

Smoke still billowed from the charred remains of the home late Sunday morning.

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A next-door neighbor, Jeanne Jirik, said Luck lived alone and did not have pets. She said he was friendly, just recently shouting to her, from across their yards, to wish her a happy New Year.

She said she felt sorry for the man and wished she could have done something to help.

She said the home was once part of a larger estate owned by Luck’s family, and it included much of the land around the home.

Jirik said she and her mother slept through most of the commotion during the response to the fire, waking up around 6:45 a.m. to see firetrucks outside their door and flames shooting out of their neighbor’s home.

“It was pretty shocking,” she said of the fire and Luck’s death.

The home, which had a large fieldstone chimney and a sweeping view of Three Mile Pond, is at the end of the road. An American flag is attached to a tree between the home and the driveway, where a snow-covered mini-van was parked.

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The one-story home was built in 1965, according to town tax records, and the 3.2-acre property is valued at $158,000. Town tax records indicate the home did not have a heating system. It is listed as a seasonal home.

A team of four fire marshal’s investigators visited the scene Sunday to try to determine how the fire started, according to McCausland. They were no longer at the scene by late Sunday morning.

Fire marshals, according to McCausland, say the fire started in the main section of the house, but they are continuing to seek an exact cause.

Keith Edwards — 621-5647

kedwards@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @kedwardskj


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