Bath, ME- Friends of the woman who died when an explosion leveled her Bath duplex on Tuesday morning say she had smelled gas in her home for weeks.
Every Tuesday, she’d come, said Neighborhood Cafe food kitchen volunteer Patti Silva. Reliable. That door would open and it would be, ‘Oh, look who’s here! It’s Dale!’
Silva and other volunteers at Nieghborhood Cafe got ready for a Tuesday-night meal without Fussell.
Fussell volunteered at the food kitchen for two years.
It’s going to be hard for me, Silva said. She’s not going to be here on Tuesday to help, and I know the reason why she’s not going to be here, and I think that’s what’s going to hurt me more.
People who volunteered with Fussell at the food pantry said she had been complaining about headaches and had notified the property manager.
She said, ‘It’s just that the last couple of days, I’ve been smelling gas in my apartment.’ And she said, ‘I think that’s what probably is giving me the headache,’ Silva said.
Silva said Fussell told her she had called the management company about the gas.
The apartment complex manager said she had no record of Fussell calling to complain.
They insist that the homes in the development are safe.
Fussell’s funeral is scheduled for Tuesday night.