A retired auto mechanic burned to death in front of his Queens home early yesterday, sitting idly in the beloved luxury car that illness and old age made him unfit to drive, police and family said.
Police are still investigating what caused the fire inside Vernon Crawford’s 2003 Mercury Grand Marquis sedan – though relatives said it was likely ignited by a cigarette.
He may have taken the car out, but relatives said there’s a good chance he never left his parking spot. When Crawford, 72, became too ill to drive the car, he took to siting in the driver’s seat, turning the ignition, and just listening to the engine purr.
“He wouldn’t go anywhere,” his son, Herbert Crawford, said yesterday. “He’d just sit and smile.”
As far as the family can tell, that’s what Crawford decided to do late Wednesday night.
But shortly after 2 a.m. yesterday, Crawford’s niece heard the car horn blaring in front of their South Ozone Park home. By the time she got out there, the car was already completely engulfed in flames.
Police said they were not sure if Crawford died before or after the fire ignited.
Crawford retired from the Jamaica Bus Company in 1990, where for 33 years he would never allow a bus to stay grounded for long, co-workers said. It pained him that he could not do the same for himself.
He reluctantly bought the Mercury brand new in 2003.
“He really wanted that car, but he was afraid it was too much,” his son said. “We told him, you have the money, so you should do it. You have to live your life.”
Crawford drove the car until the end of last year, when his strength and reflexes became dulled by his ailments.
“He loved that car and wanted to drive it – even just to the Dunkin’ Donuts,” his grieving son Herbert said. “But it just wasn’t safe for him anymore.”
Former co-workers at the bus company said they were shocked by the news. “He always went out of his way to teach the younger guys,” said Kevin Cadigan, who still works at the bus company. “He had a curious mind, especially when it came to the electrical systems of any car or bus. Everyone would ask him for advice.
He could do everything: air conditioning, heating, and lights.”
Crawford had eight children, and always pushed them to succeed, his son said.