CROWNSVILLE, Md. — While the flames appeared to be contained to a side wing of the house on Oser drive in Crownsville, 92-year-old Erna Brunchorst was in the middle of it, and her son heard her cries for help, but was unable to save her.
“We received a 911 call from an adult family member from inside the home who had told us that his house was on fire and that his mom was trapped,” said Anne Arundel County Fire Lt. Jenny Macallair.
Firefighters pulled Brunchorst out of the home, and she was airlifted to Johns Hopkins Bayview, but did not survive her injuries.
The firefighters returned to the neighborhood less than 24 hours later to make sure neighbors have working smoke alarms as the county recorded its seventh fatal fire thus far this year.
While investigators still don’t know what caused the fire, we’re told by a family friend that speculation on social media is doing more harm than good.
We are concealing his identity at his request.
“Erna was a smoker and she was on oxygen, but it was not the oxygen that did it,” the victim’s friend told us, “They have no idea what caused the fire, but it was not the oxygen.”
What we have learned is that Brunchorst had lived in the neighborhood for decades, she worked at Blob’s Park in Jessup, the site of America’s first Oktoberfest for much of that time and she will be sorely missed.
“We’re sorry for the loss of our community member and just want people to reach out if they need help,” said Macallair, “We have crisis intervention teams and things of that nature if they need assistance.”
