BUXTON – Frank Hebert’s family and friends will gather on Sunday to celebrate and honor a man who devoted his life to his family and to helping others.

Mr. Hebert, a skilled machinist and longtime volunteer for the West Buxton Fire Department, died Thursday from injuries he sustained in a fire behind his home. He was 85.

He was described on Friday as a dedicated family man who liked to get his hands dirty and generously gave his time to help his friends and family.

“He was always the first to pitch in,” said his grandson, Stephan Stacey of Mansfield, Conn. “He was always showing up at one of his daughter’s houses to help with a project, shovel snow off a roof or fix something. It was to the point that we wanted him to slow down and take it easy.”

Mr. Hebert was burning a grassy embankment behind his home at 66 River Road on Wednesday when his clothing caught fire. He suffered burns on 70 percent of his body, according to the state Fire Marshal’s Office. He died early Thursday.

Stacey choked up Friday while describing the efforts of his mother and firefighters.

Stacey’s mother, Suzanne Richards of Waterboro, was driving on River Road to visit Mr. Hebert when she saw smoke billowing from the embankment at his home. The hill was too steep for her to climb, so she ran around the house to get closer to him, Stacey said.

“The fire and smoke got too big,” he said. “She lost track of him. Her jacket had burns. It became kind of a nightmare.”

Two volunteer firefighters, Lts. Jeremy Redlon and Jamie Grant, assisted in the effort to save Mr. Hebert.

Redlon had Mr. Hebert in his sight for a moment, but he had collapsed to the ground. Redlon rushed into the fire with his fire pants and no other gear. He tried to put the fire out with his hands and his sweatshirt and rolling Mr. Hebert on the ground.

Grant used a firefighting jacket the same way.

Redlon was treated for cuts and burns to his hands and was kept overnight at Maine Medical Center in Portland.

“We all say this is part of our jobs, but (Redlon) went above and beyond,” said Bruce Mullen, chief of the Buxton Fire Rescue Department. “When the call came in for a brush fire behind a residence, I didn’t expect to find anyone injured and surely not to the extent that they would succumb to their injuries.”

Mr. Hebert set fires every spring on the embankment to keep the area free of leaves and vegetation. Stacey said it was part of his grandfather’s upkeep of his property.

Mr. Hebert is survived by his three daughters, who are deaf or hard of hearing, and his wife of 65 years, Leola Hebert.

He spent his career as a machinist in companies such as Keddy’s Manufacturing in Windham and Rogers Fibre in Buxton. He then became a machinist at Nichols Portland, where he retired in 1985.

Mr. Hebert and his wife enjoyed snowmobiling, fishing and taking excursions to pick blueberries.

For many years, he mowed the Hillcrest Cemetery in Hollis.

Stacey remembers picking blueberries with him, then walking across the street together to plunge into the Saco River.

“We called him ‘Papa,’ ” Stacey said. “I’ll miss him. He was there for us. He enjoyed his life.”

Staff Writer Melanie Creamer can be contacted at 791-6361 or at:

mcreamer@pressherald.com

 

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