Like Brooks' family, many relatives aren't surprised when a relative who smokes and drinks heavily dies in a fire. Sheila Bean often drank vodka and smoked cigarettes in her Howland home. A fire broke out in her kitchen just after 6 p.m. one June evening in 1995. Firefighters found Bean on her bedroom floor. A partially consumed half-gallon of vodka chilled in her kitchen freezer.
Fire investigators believe a cigarette dropped in a stuffed kitchen chair started the blaze.
Family members told investigators that they had expected some sort of tragedy to befall Bean because of her excessive drinking and smoking. The night of the fire, investigators believe Bean was confused and unable to escape because she had drunk so much. Her blood-alcohol content was 0.37 percent. Last January, Ellis was called out of bed for a fatal fire in Millinocket. It claimed the lives of two preschool boys and their father.