BATH (WGME) -- The State Fire Marshal's Office says a leak in a propane line caused the explosion that killed a woman and leveled a house in Bath.
In addition to releasing the cause, investigators identified the victim as 64-year-old Dale Ann Fussell.
The explosion happened just after 5 a.m. Tuesday at 29-31 Bluff Road. According to the fire marshal's office, a propane line in the wall of the home leaked the gas into a crawl space. Something ignited the gas, and the two-family home exploded.
Fussell was killed. The man who lived in the other apartment, Kenneth Hooper, wasn't home at the time. He had left for work about a half hour before the explosion.
Three other people who live in neighboring buildings were taken to the hospital with minor injuries. They're all expected to be OK.
Gas crews spent Wednesday checking propane tanks throughout the neighborhood. A majority of the homes there are heated with propane.
While the cleanup continues, neighbors put a cross and flowers at the site of the explosion in memory of Fussell.
Her friend, Patti Silva, says she was a mother of seven and volunteered weekly at the Neighborhood Cafe - a part of the Bath United Church of Christ's food pantry.
Silva says every Tuesday morning, she, Fussell, and several others would cook food for over 100 people. However, this Tuesday, Fussell wasn't there.
"We wondered all day. We hadn't heard anything, and I kept thinking, 'Please don't let it be Dale, Please don't let it be Dale,'" Silva said.
Fussell's daughter called Silva Tuesday night to tell her that Fussell had died in the explosion, leaving a void in Silva's life.
"There were days she'd come in and wasn't feeling well, but she always made it a good time. She always made it a fun time. She made an impression on people."
Fussell made such an impression that the Neighborhood Cafe will dedicate next Tuesday's weekly dinner to her. It will follow Fussell's funeral at 5:30 p.m.
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