A fire that killed a couple in their Acushnet home on Christmas Day was likely accidental, according to state Fire Marshal Jon Davine’s office.
Responding to multiple 911 calls, members of the Acushnet Police and Fire Departments arrived at 34 Garfield St. shortly before 2 a.m. Wednesday to find heavy smoke and flames coming from the two-story home and middle
Investigators returned to the home where Leo Lyonnais, 89, and Annette Lyonnais, 87, died, Davine’s office said in a statement. Investigators identified the front left corner of the building’s first floor as the starting point of the fire. They found a wood-burning stove and an electrical outlet with a plugged-in adapter, either of which could have contributed to the fire.
Electrical and heating fires are among the most common types of residential fires in Massachusetts, Davine said in the release. Heating equipment such as fireplaces, wood stoves and fireplaces contributed to 541 house fires in 2023, while electrical items contributed to 682 that same year.
However, the cause of that fire remains undetermined as investigators “cannot rule out all but one potential factor,” Davine’s office said.
“All of us here at the Acushnet Fire Department want to once again extend our condolences to the Lyonnais family,” Acushnet Fire Chief Thomas Farland said in the statement.
It took firefighters more than an hour to bring the flames under control. One firefighter was taken to a hospital for evaluation but is expected to recover, according to the Fire Department.