By SANDY McGEE

CUMBERLAND — Murder and suicide took the lives of a married couple whose remains were found in a house that burned and exploded Thursday morning.

That was the determination local police made public in a press conference Friday afternoon.
The state Medical Examiner’s Office identified the bodies recovered from 500 Nate Whipple Highway as Norman Langelier, 61, and his wife, Beatrice Langelier, 60.
Police determined that Norman Langelier shot his wife with a handgun, then set the house on fire after placing six propane tanks throughout the two-story Colonial. There was no word as to what Mr. Langelier used to light the fire.
The cause of death for Beatrice Langelier was “skull fractures and brain injuries due to a perforating gunshot wound to the head,” according to the medical examiner.
Norman Langelier reportedly died due to “multiple blunt force injuries” triggered by the fire, Police Chief John J. Desmarais said.
“(The cause of death) was consistent with debris from the explosion,” Desmarais said. “He was not trying to escape the fire.”
The Langeliers’ bodies were discovered in the remnants of their 3,300-square-foot house, which was razed by a massive fire and subsequent explosion before dawn Thursday. The home was fully engulfed when the first company of firefighters arrived.
“The fire was extensive,” said the police chief. “The explosions even caused damage to the foundation.”
The fire is still under investigation by the State Fire Marshal’s Office.
The couple had been married 40 years and lived at the Nate Whipple house for the past eight years. Langelier owned a manufacturing business in Attleboro. His wife was a homemaker.
The couple had no children, but belonged to an extended family that includes a sister living in the Blackstone Valley area.
“This is a tragedy,”Cumberland Mayor Daniel McKee said. “Something like this could happen in any community. It could even happen in Cumberland. This will be a memory (the family) will carry with them for many years to come.”
Desmarais believed this to be the first murder-suicide in town in more than 15 years.
Neighbors said Thursday that there had been no indication the Langeliers were under stress or having difficulties. Norman Langelier, an avid hunter, collected firearms and manufactured his own ammunition on the property. Police removed 40 guns, including handguns and rifles, as well as homemade bullets, from the house Friday.
All of the guns belonged to Langelier, who held permits for each of them, police said.
According to the police chief, a handwritten note discovered at the scene Thursday saved the lives of police and fire personnel.
The note was propped on a propane tank in the bed of a pickup truck in the driveway. It warned firefighters not to enter the house because there were explosives inside.
The first police officer on the scene, Patrolman David Rosa, made an effort to get in, but stopped after the first explosion, Desmarais said.
Emergency responders arriving shortly after Rosa discovered the note and immediately warned police and fire personnel. The responders included Sgt. James Speroni and Patrolman Robert Fay, who heard several small explosions as they arrived.
“That was the ammunition,” Desmarais said. “It was a dangerous situation. It could have been tragic for officers and fire personnel first on the scene.”
Desmarais said the note was last in the chain of the events leading to the fire, put in place well after Beatrice Langelier was killed.
Desmarais did not speculate as to Norman Langelier’s motive. The police investigation is ongoing.