Acton couple die as fire sweeps house

ACTON -- Long after their children had grown and moved away, the home of George and Margaret "Peggy" Reedy remained a place for youngsters to play, especially in winter, when their hilly front yard became a winter playground, neighbors say.

But yesterday, those neighbors were mourning the deaths of the elderly couple who were killed by a fast-moving fire that trapped them on the second floor of their home on Captain Forbush Lane in the Minute Man Ridge neighborhood.

"The Reedys were kind and generous neighbors," said Erin Sweeney, a neighbor who said she was deeply shocked by the loss of the couple. "They had a grandparentlike image. They were always giving a kind compliment about the kids. They will be greatly missed."

The fire was caused by improper disposal of cigarettes, according to State Fire Marshal Stephen D. Coan and Acton Fire Chief Robert C. Craig. Both Reedys were known to smoke, said Coan, and the fire started in a bedroom on the left side of the house, which was the most heavily damaged portion. Smoke alarms were present in the house, but were disabled, according to Jennifer Mieth, spokeswoman for the Department of Fire Services.

George Reedy, 72, a retired insurance executive, was found in a bedroom on the left side of the house, and Margaret Reedy, 70, was found in another bedroom on the right, officials said. Cause of death for both was smoke inhalation, according to the Middlesex district attorney's office.

Massachusetts has had 26 fire-related deaths so far this year, 10 more than had been recorded by April 30 last year.

Coan said seven of this year's fire-related deaths were murder-suicides connected to domestic violence, an unusually high number of such deaths.

Setting aside that rarity, he said, the leading cause of death remains improper disposal of smoking materials.

Coan said he hopes the new state law requiring the sale of fire-safe cigarettes that takes effect next January will change those grim statistics.

New York in 2004 became the first state to require fire-safe cigarettes, which extinguish when no one is puffing on them, and recorded 500 fewer smoking-related fires in the first full year under the law, according to Lorraine Carli, spokeswoman for the nonprofit National Fire Protection Association, which has championed the idea. About 10 states now have the law, she said.

In the Reedys' quiet neighborhood of single-family houses, residents said that light from the flames woke them and alerted them to the blaze.

Kathryn Mitchell said that her husband, Stephen, woke her around 1:30 a.m. and that they both saw the first arriving firefighters in the bright light of the blaze. "It had kind of an eerie glow," she said.

Nancy Beavers, who lives across from the Reedys, said she saw frantic efforts by a large number of firefighters to save the couple.

"There were many people there," she said, "but there was no way to get them out. It was overwhelmingly awful."

Acton Deputy Fire Chief Kevin Lyons said flames were pouring from the roof when firefighters arrived for what quickly became a three-alarm fire. They tried to save the couple, but could not reach them in time, he said.

"The lack of early notification certainly compromised our ability to extinguish this fire," Lyons said.

George Reedy was treasurer for the Commercial Union Insurance Cos. from 1973 to 1984, said a spokeswoman for OneBeacon Group, which absorbed the other companies several years ago. Neighbors said Margaret Reedy had worked occasionally in a daycare business.

Scott Gongwer, who lives directly across the street and was friends with the couple, said his two sons considered the Reedys surrogate grandparents, because theirs live out of state. The couple, who lived in the neighborhood for decades, let the boys use their front lawn for sledding in winter.

"They were wonderful, wonderful people," Gongwer said. "It's going to be a big loss to this neighborhood."