Death Notice
Durango
Durango blast victim dies
A Durango woman who was severely burned in a gas explosion that destroyed her home on Feb. 8 died Saturday at University Medical Center in Albuquerque.
Charlotte Freienmuth, 64, suffered burns over 80 percent of her body in thenatural gas explosion that officials say was caused by faulty piping into the home.
Freienmuth lost another home in an unrelated gas explosion several years ago.
"PVC water pipe was used, which is not approved for carrying gas," said Butch Knowlton, directory of emergency preparedness for La Plata County.
Knowlton said Freienmuth was receiving free gas from a producer as part of a lease agreement to operate a well on her property. The faulty connection was installed by a friend or family member, not the gas producer, Knowlton said.
Freienmuth's 5-year-old grandson, Henry, was visiting her at the time of the explosion. He remains hospitalized with burns over 55 percent of his body.
Obituary
Charlotte L. Freienmuth
Memorial services have been postponed at least a month for Charlotte L. Freienmuth, a lifelong Durango area resident, who died Saturday, Feb. 15, 1997, at the University Hospital in Albuquerque from severe burn wounds suffered in a house explosion. She was 64.
Mrs. Freienmuth was born in Pagosa Springs in 1932.
She graduated from Pagosa Springs High School and attended Central Business College in Denver.
She went to work in the Pagosa Springs law office of her eventual husband, Edward. The couple married in 1954 and moved to Durango in 1956.
Mrs. Freienmuth was a member of Chapter BR, PEO and NEO Delphians. She was active in St. Mark's Episcopal Church and the North American Falconers Association.
She is survived by her mother, Velma Wood; a sister, Cleda of Pagosa Springs; two sons, Karl of Phoenix and David of Durango; and five grandsons, Daniel, Michael and Kevin of Phoenix and Henry and Derek of Durango.
Donations may be made to the Edward S. Freienmuth Memorial Scholarship Fund at Fort Lewis College or the Freienmuth Medical Fund at First National Bank in Durango.
Obituary
Charlotte Louise Lewis Freienmuth
Charlotte Louise Lewis was born July 2, 1932 in Pagosa Springs, Colorado.
Charlotte graduated from Pagosa Springs High School and attended Central Business College in Denver. She went to work in the Pagosa Springs law office of her eventual husband, Edward. She was a member of Chapter BR, PEO and NEO Delphians. She was active in St. Mark's Episcopal Church and the North American Falconers Association.
She married Edward Still Freienmuth on August 12, 1954 in Durango, Colorado. They had two sons: Karl Edward Freienmuth and David Otto Freienmuth.
She died February 18, 1997 from burns resulting from a natural gas explosion at her home in Durango, Colorado.