Trailer fire claims Kenduskeag woman

KENDUSKEAG – A local woman died after a trailer fire Monday, despite her roommate’s attempt to pull her to safety, authorities said.

Rescuers performed CPR on Bonnie Freyenhagen, 51, outside the trailer, and she was rushed to Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor, where she died.

Stephen McCausland, spokesman for the state Department of Public Safety, said the woman’s roommate, Jeffrey Seifort, arrived home from work Monday and found her near a door where she apparently had been overcome while trying to escape the fire. He then pulled her outside.

McCausland said Freyenhagen was a smoker, and investigators believe the fire was caused by careless disposal of cigarettes.

Fire crews from neighboring towns responded to the fire at 163 Higginsville Road, but the trailer was destroyed, Deputy Fire Chief Tom Porter said. A dog also perished in the blaze, according to McCausland.

When the first firefighters arrived on scene, they found the structure engulfed in flames, Porter said.

It wasn’t known if the property was insured. A detached garage was untouched by the flames.

Monday’s rain and heavy winds didn’t hinder firefighters’ efforts as crews from Kenduskeag, Glenburn, Corinth, Levant and Hudson battled the blaze.