A Lewiston man died Saturday from injuries received when a fire broke out while he was working on his car, the State Fire Marshal’s Office said.
Fire investigators said Gary Labonte, 57, was draining the car’s gasoline tank, preparing to replace its fuel pump.
Labonte was working on the lawn outside the apartment building where he lived at 16 Cottage St. He also was standing near four gas cans that he was using to store the drained fuel, said Steve McCausland, spokesman for the Maine Department of Public Safety.
A spark from the electric pump Labonte was using to drain the car’s tank ignited the gasoline and he was engulfed in flames, investigators determined.
Neighbors responded to help Labonte, who was first taken to Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston, then transferred to Maine Medical Center in Portland, where he died Saturday evening.
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