LANCASTERONLINE.com

UPLAND, OHIO 

Police have identified the elderly Gap couple who died as the result of a fire in their home Saturday night.

Joel F. King Jr., 79, died Saturday in the 6:25 p.m. blaze at 268 Cambridge Road, according to state police.

His wife of 58 years, Miriam S. King, died Sunday at Crozer-Chester Medical Center, Upland, Delaware County, police said.

Mrs. King used an oxygen tube for breathing, and that is where the accidental fire started, state police Fire Marshal James DeWalt said.

"We believe she was lighting a propane lamp when her oxygen tube caught fire," he said today.

Her son, Elmer King, pulled her out of the home, but Joel King, who uses a wheelchair, did not escape, DeWalt said.

The fire was confined to a 1½-story addition to the large clapboard farm house, said White Horse Fire Company Chief Rodney Gossert. The first floor was damaged by fire and smoke and the second level was damaged by smoke.

Comments (2)

polizei: ... Sad. I have watched some folks with oxygen tubes pull the mask back to smoke still. 1 January 11, 2010 88pdx: ... Shows how addictive smoking is! I've seen that too. At least smoking will kill quickly if the O2 ignites, rather than slowly from lung cancer and emphysema. Smoking is yucky. 2 January 11, 2010

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