She suffered burns to her body following a blaze at the Cumberland Arms Apartments.
Cumberland, Md (KM) A Cumberland woman who was badly burned as a result of a fire in her apartment earlier this month has died. The State Fire Marshal’s Office says Roberta L. Barb, 82, passed away early Tuesday morning at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center in Baltimore where she was being treated for 2nd- and 3rd-degree burns to her body.
Investigators say Barb was injured while in her unit at the Cumberland Arms Apartments at 10 North Liberty Street.. On the evening of March 8th, her husband had left the unit earlier to get some dinner, leaving Mrs. Barb all alone. She was unable to walk due to a medical condition.
During the time her husband was out, an electric blanket Mrs. Barb had around her caught fire, igniting her clothes and the reclining chair she was sitting in. Mr. Barb came home and saw fire in the unit. He was able to rescue his wife, carrying her from the apartment into the hallway, where fire fighters met them. Mrs. Barb was transported to Western Maryland Regional Medical Center and later to Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center.
The Fire Marshal’s Office says the cause of the fire was due to the electric blanket which failed. Investigators say the sprinkler system in the apartment contained the fire to the chair, minimizing the damage to $5,000.
By Kevin McManus