WE CAN DO MORE TO PREVENT TRAGIC DEATHS

Real tragedies in Cape Girardeau are so rare they are magnified when they happen here.

The city saw two such tragedies in the last week.

Harold Gene Payne, 55, was virtually confined to his wheelchair due to a stroke.

When a lighted cigarette made contact with a living room couch in the house where he lived, the results were disastrous. The North Fountain Street structure quickly became engulfed in flames, and Payne was overcome by smoke.

Payne's brother, Robert, tried to save him but only came away choking and burned himself. The fire left two families homeless.

Hours later, Cape Girardeau County Coroner Mike Hurst estimates, 79-year-old Sellars Allen lay dying, naked and curled in the fetal position.

The combined temperature and humidity made it feel like 115 degrees inside his Olive Street rental house.

Windows had been nailed shut, and an electric fan sat unplugged nearby.

Allen's landlord had visited earlier in the day and was greeted by his reclusive tenant, who apparently kept to himself and had nailed the windows shut so he'd feel safer.

Hurst said the Allen's confused behavior when the landlord visited may have been caused by a heatstroke.

A neighbor found Allen's body three days later.

The worst part of both tragedies was that they didn't have to happen.

Using more caution while smoking indoors or smoking only in a safe area could have prevented the house fire.

And, while Allen had people who cared enough to check on him regularly, he apparently never received the help he needed.

The Missouri Division of Aging can help reclusive elderly people during extreme weather.

Case workers make home visits to see what services clients need, and then they recruit other agencies to help make the home cooler.

The agency's toll-free number is 1 (800) 392-0210.

The Salvation Army provides an air-conditioned building where anyone seeking relief from the heat may sit. The organization also provides fans and can deliver them in some cases.

And the East Missouri Action Agency lends air conditioners to elderly persons with notes from their doctors.

With a community that provides so much support for those in need as Cape Girardeau, there's no reason to repeat such heartbreaking events.