Survivor of Trevorton fire dies Wednesday night

ALLENTOWN - Pat Miller, the 77-year-old Trevorton woman who survived last week's deadly fire in Trevorton, passed away Wednesday evening at the Lehigh Valley Burn Center, according to her sister-in-law, Alvena Miller.

Pat Miller, who attempted unsuccessfully Friday to rescue her 95-year-old sister, Gertrude Koppenheffer, from the fire that destroyed their home at 249 W. Shamokin St., had been in critical condition at the Allentown burn center since Friday.

The family held Koppenheffer's funeral Wednesday morning and will host Pat's funeral Saturday morning, said Alvena.

"Maybe after all this is over, maybe I'll feel better," she said. "I can't feel worse."

Pat suffered burns over 35 percent of her body before collapsing inside the house. In addition to smoke inhalation, she had gone into cardiac arrest Friday, and had since been kept alive by life support.

According to Alvena, Pat's lungs stopped functioning and she had no brain activity. The decision was made by family Wednesday to let her go.

Alvena said she didn't travel to Allentown, because her sister-in-law was unable to talk or function.

"It's a lot (to deal with)," she said, admitting she lost a lot of sleep in the past week.

Selfless person

Pat has been described by neighbors and family members as selfless person who was heavily involved in the community, including the St. Patrick Church in Trevorton, tha Parish Council of Catholic Women, Trevorton American Legion Post 92 Ladies Auxiliary, Trevorton Patsies and the Trevorton Senior Action Center. She took care of Koppenheffer as she approached 100 years of age.

"She took care of everyone," said Alvena.

The Rev. Adrian Gallagher of St. Patricks Church, she explained, has told her how much he missed her.

"He said, 'I don't even know where the locks are,'" she said.

Undetermined cause

The blaze that gutted the three-story home at 249 W. Shamokin St. started at about 3 p.m. Friday amid cold and windy conditions and was brought under control at about 6:30 p.m. More than 100 firefighters from at least seven fire companies in two counties responded. Some were still at the scene as late as 3 a.m. Saturday to douse hot spots, clean up and make sure roads in the area were no longer ice-covered.

Pat was pulled from the former Miller Bakery and taken immediately to Lehigh Valley, where she fought for her life for several days.

Koppenheffer wasn't found until just after 11 p.m. Friday. The second floor had apparently collapsed onto the first floor, hindering the search and recovering. She was pronounced dead at the scene by Deputy Coroner Barry J. Leisenring. She was not positively identified until the following day, according to Northumberland County Coroner James Kelley.

The cause of death was determined to be thermal injuries and the manner of death was accidental, Kelley said.

Norman Fedder, state police fire marshal, is investigating whether the motor or cord on a refrigerator is to blame for Friday's fire.

Fedder said the exact cause is listed as undetermined at this time, due to the extent of damage, but that it doesn't appear to be suspicious in nature. It may have originated behind the refrigerator, according to the fire marshal.

He called the building a total loss, saying the estimated combined cost of property and building totals $110,000.

The building was insured.

Sign up for Text Alerts

Sign up for e-mail newsletters