Raymond C. Corkran, Jr., was a pioneer in the Harford Green development, where property records list his home as Lot 1 in its subdivision, and his dog Cal had been known as a neighborhood ambassador.
“Ray and his late wife Phyllis were the first ones to welcome us to the neighborhood,” said Diana Cline, who lives several houses away. “They made us a plate of pastries and cookies. He was kind and thoughtful and humorous and a joy to be around.
” Corkran, 73, was killed Sunday morning when as a result of a gas leak. A BGE contractor, Jose Rodriguez-Alvarado, 35, was also killed in the blast. Rodriguez-Alvarado worked for an Arbutus-based electrical contracting company called Hammer’s Powerline Maintenance, according to Maryland Department of Labor spokesperson Jamie Mangrum.
He had been sent to the Bel Air home in response to electrical issues. Representatives for the contracting company, which also does business as Hammer’s Underground Maintenance, did not return multiple calls and emails requesting comment. State and federal agencies, including the Maryland fire marshal and the National Transportation Safety Board, are .
Cline was among several neighbors who said they had been thrown from their beds by the force of the blast around 6:40 a.m. Sunday morning.
Nearby houses were damaged, some so severely that 12 families have been displaced. She called Corkran an “anchor” in the friendly community, where cookouts, Christmas parties and other gatherings are held th.