Worcester Telegram & Gazette – telegram.com – Victim of fatal fire is identified
GARDNER — Leila Legere, 49, who died in a four-alarm fire that gutted a three-story apartment building at 34 Franklin Court early Sunday, was a quiet woman who kept to herself. ?She never bothered anyone,? said Gary LaBell, owner of the building. ?I don?t think she ever complained about another tenant.? Fire investigators are trying to determine the cause of the blaze. Mr. LaBell said he is also waiting for an evaluation by his insurance company that will determine if the building will have to be torn down. He said Ms. Legere lived in the building since 2006. Mr. LaBell said the building is about 80 years old but was in good condition. He said he is doing what he can for his tenants. ?I feel bad for them,? he said. ?They were all great tenants.? The fire broke out about 2:30 a.m. Sunday, while most residents slept. The apartment occupied by Ms. Legere was consumed by flames. Tenants on the third floor lost everything after the fire swept up the side of the building and through the walls, setting the roof on fire and causing it to collapse. Yesterday morning, some of the displaced residents returned to the building to recover any belongings that could be salvaged. Digging through the remains of his third-floor apartment this morning, Steve Robichaud and his son, Justin, didn?t find much. ?This is all we got,? Mr. Robichaud said, pointing to a cast-iron pan, two packages of candy, a small cooler and a few electrical items. The fire did not burn Mr. Robichaud?s belongings, but caused the roof to collapse, leaving a waist-deep pile of rubble on the third floor, so his things are unsalvageable. A fire alarm alerted Mr. Robichaud and his son and they were able to warn other tenants and help first-floor tenant William W. Watkins, 84, out of the building. They were unable to reach Ms. Legere in time to save her. Justin Robichaud said he did not know the victim. ?She was kind of a loner, very quiet; she kept mostly to herself,? he said. ?You never saw her in the winter.? Linda Marlborough of Westminster was also in the building yesterday, collecting items from the apartment of her father, Mr. Watkins. She praised Mr. Robichaud and his son for saving her father. ?It?s nice to know there are angels at work,? she said. Ms. Marlborough said her father was fortunate in a way: although the fire started right next to his apartment, the flames took another route through the building, and many of his belongings could be salvaged. She said her mother, Lorraine Watkins, 80, lived with her father until a few days ago, when she moved into a nursing home. ?Thank God my mother was in the nursing home,? she said. Ms. Marlborough said her mother needs to use a wheelchair to get around, and she does not believe she would have been able to escape a fire in time. The Watkinses fared better than the Robichauds. Ms. Marlborough had a truckload of items she had recovered from the apartment, including a chair Mr. Watkins had just bought for his wife. Steve Robichaud said Mr. LaBell, who lives in Fitchburg, has already gotten him a new apartment in a building Mr. LaBell owns nearby. ?It wasn?t much of a move,? Mr. Robichaud said. ?Just the clothes I?m wearing.? Articles Most Read Today
