Woman, 62, dies in Quincy fire

Residents of the city-owned high-rise at 95 Martensen St., which houses elderly, low-income, and disabled residents, said they had warned 62-year-old Donna Marani not to smoke in her apartment - especially because she regularly used home oxygen devices.

“She was a smoker,’’ said Jenn Fell, 31, who lives in the building with her two young sons. “Several people in the building have warned her about smoking while on oxygen. Smoking can be very dangerous, and unfortunately everybody lost a really good friend out of this tragedy.’’

State, local, and Norfolk County officials determined yesterday afternoon that a cigarette ignited the fire.

“The investigation revealed the cause to be consistent with a smoking-related fire,’’ State Fire Marshal Stephen D. Coan told the Globe yesterday. “And there was home oxygen in the apartment.’’

Fell said she and other neighbors were devastated by Marani’s death.

“She was a great woman,’’ Fell said. “I’ve known her since I moved in three years ago, and she’s always been very friendly. She always said hi, on your good days and your bad, if you were happy or upset. She was uplifting to everyone.’’

Fire officials and neighbors said they did not know whether Marani had any family in the area.

Inside Marani’s apartment, the charred couch where the fire apparently started was reduced to its metal springs, the tatters of a Red Sox blanket visible on top of it. Across the room, a bookshelf held Christmas cards and old photographs. The remnants of what a fire official identified as an oxygen unit were visible on the floor. On a small table, covered with a partially burned Christmas tablecloth, was a cigarette lighter and a shopping list that included Maverick 100s cigarettes.

The fire, which was reported shortly before 8 a.m., appeared to start on a couch, according to Quincy Fire Chief Joseph Barron. Marani’s body was found in a hallway between the couch and her bathroom, he said. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

Barron said there was nothing firefighters could have done to help Marani, but he praised them for preventing the fire from spreading.

“It was an aggressive attack on the fire, which was contained to the one area,’’ Barron said in an interview at the scene. “The crew did an excellent job.’’

Two residents were taken to hospitals with minor injuries.

While firefighters managed to contain the fire to Marani’s apartment, significant water and smoke damage could be seen throughout the building yesterday. Cleanup crews were on hand all afternoon. Most residents were allowed to return home, but more than a dozen from units near Marani’s apartment were being sheltered at a Salvation Army facility, fire officials said.

EMS crews from Fallon Ambulance were at the scene assisting the building’s elderly residents, many of whom were in wheelchairs, back into their apartments yesterday.

Since 1997, 18 people have died and more than 30 others have been severely burned or suffered serious smoke inhalation in fires across the state involving people who smoked while using a home oxygen system, Coan said.

Air is about 21 percent oxygen, but medical tanks are filled with 100 percent oxygen, which can fuel intense flames.

“Fires related to smoking and use of home oxygen have been a great concern of mine for a long time,’’ Coan said. “We have a group made up of fire service personnel, members of the medical community, oxygen manufacturers, the Red Cross, and others focused on a public education campaign to highlight the dangers.’’

John M. Guilfoil can be reached at jguilfoil@globe.com.