Something Sad...And Weird

It’s a sad day in the White House. But this is a very strange story.

A lobbyist for the energy industry was found dead in her sport utility vehicle early Monday. The lobbyist, Ashley Turton, 37, a regulatory affairs analyst for Progress Energy, which is based in North Carolina, appeared to have been backing out of her garage when her car hit it and caught fire. She is the wife of Daniel Turton, White House deputy director for legislative affairs for the House of Representatives.

That’s a bit of an odd sentence construction, but I guess “it” is the garage. So, she hit her own garage as she attempted to back out of it and then somehow was unable to extract herself from her car after it caught fire. You’ll have to excuse me if I have trouble envisioning how that actually played out. It would certainly qualify as a total freak accident.

I’d like to see some more details on this incident. My condolences to Mr. Turton and the whole White House team. It’s been a rough couple of days.

10 Comments

Phil Perspective on January 11, 2011 at 12:59 am

Something is very fishy about that story. There is something more to it that either the authorities won’t admit to, or the reporter is leaving out.

Steven D on January 11, 2011 at 7:11 am

As I used to say when I was a lawyer, this doesn’t pass the smell test.
- Indianadem on January 11, 2011 at 8:17 am
  
  Speaking of which, a coincidence?
  
  Duke Energy Corp. will buy Progress Energy Inc. for $13.7 billion in stock, creating the largest U.S. utility and increasing its ability to build new power plants to meet future greenhouse-gas emissions limits.
- Errol on January 11, 2011 at 9:04 am
  
  yes, sad and weird.

nalbar on January 11, 2011 at 1:50 am

No worries, Issa will eventually get to the bottom of it.
.
.
..
.nalbar

Steven D on January 11, 2011 at 7:12 am

Yes, I’m sure he’ll blame Michelle for it.

Oui on January 11, 2011 at 3:43 am

Former Hill Staffer Killed In Capitol Hill Rowhouse Garage Fire

Roll Call reports that Turton, who had been working as a lobbyist for North Carolina utility conglomerate Progress Energy, was identified as the deceased earlier this morning. Turton had also previously served as an aide to Rep. Dick Gephardt (D-MO) and as Rep. Rosa DeLauro’s (D-CT) chief of staff. As we noted in today’s Morning Roundup, D.C. Fire and EMS had responded to the vehicle fire, which broke out on the 800 block of A Street SE around 5 a.m. this morning, and later found a body inside.

Turton Car Fire Caused by Low-Speed Crash, Police Say

The car fire that led to the sudden death of Ashley Turton was caused by the impact after a low-speed crash, according to the major crash investigation unit of the Metropolitan Police Department.

“It’s quite possible that the victim was maneuvering the car and came in contact with some kind of flammable chemical materials,” D.C. Fire spokesman Pete Piringer said.

Police said there was a heavy fire in the garage at 4:45 a.m. that caused significant damage to the 2008 BMW X5, which was partially backed out into the driveway and looked singed.

… Brian Wolff, a lobbyist at Edison Electric Institute and close friend of Turton’s, called her death devastating. “She was just a gift,” he said. “It’s such a loss for everyone. So many people knew and loved her.” Turton is survived by her husband Dan, 43, twin 4-year-olds and a 2-year-old.

"But I will not let myself be reduced to silence."

on January 11, 2011 at 11:06 am

From the picture of the garage, it’s not that odd. She probably had trouble getting in the car in that little garage. And then if the car caught fire? You don’t have a lot of time in that situation. Her driver’s side door was probably pinned closed against the wall, so she would have to undo her belt, move out from under the wheel to the passenger side (which might have been pinned by the steps from the house and all in a short time.

Bad bad way to go. A real tragedy.

Errol on January 11, 2011 at 12:34 pm

It looks like the passenger side is against the wall. But I read on one of the links of links, which I then couldn’t find again, that there was alot of fire damage inside the garage. maybe she tossed a still lit cigarette as she was getting into the car into some spots of something flamable on the garage floor. fire caught on while she was backing out and she panicked and hit the wall. smoke in that small space would be an immediate problem.

on January 20, 2011 at 5:12 am

Phil Perspective on January 11, 2011 at 12:59 am

Something is very fishy about that story. There is something more to it that either the authorities won’t admit to, or the reporter is leaving out.
- Steven D on January 11, 2011 at 7:11 am
  
  As I used to say when I was a lawyer, this doesn’t pass the smell test.
  - Indianadem on January 11, 2011 at 8:17 am
    
    Speaking of which, a coincidence?
    
    Duke Energy Corp. will buy Progress Energy Inc. for $13.7 billion in stock, creating the largest U.S. utility and increasing its ability to build new power plants to meet future greenhouse-gas emissions limits.
  - Errol on January 11, 2011 at 9:04 am
    
    yes, sad and weird.
nalbar on January 11, 2011 at 1:50 am

No worries, Issa will eventually get to the bottom of it.
.
.
..
.nalbar
- Steven D on January 11, 2011 at 7:12 am
  
  Yes, I’m sure he’ll blame Michelle for it.
Oui on January 11, 2011 at 3:43 am

.

Former Hill Staffer Killed In Capitol Hill Rowhouse Garage Fire

Roll Call reports that Turton, who had been working as a lobbyist for North Carolina utility conglomerate Progress Energy, was identified as the deceased earlier this morning. Turton had also previously served as an aide to Rep. Dick Gephardt (D-MO) and as Rep. Rosa DeLauro’s (D-CT) chief of staff. As we noted in today’s Morning Roundup, D.C. Fire and EMS had responded to the vehicle fire, which broke out on the 800 block of A Street SE around 5 a.m. this morning, and later found a body inside.

Turton Car Fire Caused by Low-Speed Crash, Police Say

The car fire that led to the sudden death of Ashley Turton was caused by the impact after a low-speed crash, according to the major crash investigation unit of the Metropolitan Police Department.

“It’s quite possible that the victim was maneuvering the car and came in contact with some kind of flammable chemical materials,” D.C. Fire spokesman Pete Piringer said.

Police said there was a heavy fire in the garage at 4:45 a.m. that caused significant damage to the 2008 BMW X5, which was partially backed out into the driveway and looked singed.

… Brian Wolff, a lobbyist at Edison Electric Institute and close friend of Turton’s, called her death devastating. “She was just a gift,” he said. “It’s such a loss for everyone. So many people knew and loved her.” Turton is survived by her husband Dan, 43, twin 4-year-olds and a 2-year-old.

"But I will not let myself be reduced to silence."
on January 11, 2011 at 11:06 am

From the picture of the garage, it’s not that odd. She probably had trouble getting in the car in that little garage. And then if the car caught fire? You don’t have a lot of time in that situation. Her driver’s side door was probably pinned closed against the wall, so she would have to undo her belt, move out from under the wheel to the passenger side (which might have been pinned by the steps from the house and all in a short time.

Bad bad way to go. A real tragedy.
- Errol on January 11, 2011 at 12:34 pm
  
  It looks like the passenger side is against the wall. But I read on one of the links of links, which I then couldn’t find again, that there was alot of fire damage inside the garage. maybe she tossed a still lit cigarette as she was getting into the car into some spots of something flamable on the garage floor. fire caught on while she was backing out and she panicked and hit the wall. smoke in that small space would be an immediate problem.
on January 20, 2011 at 5:12 am

That’s a bit of an odd sentence construction, but I guess “it” is the garage. So, she hit her own garage as she attempted to back out of it and then somehow was unable to extract herself from her car after it caught fire. You’ll have to excuse me if I have trouble envisioning how that actually played out. It would certainly qualify as a total freak accident.

Something Sad…And Weird

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