Firefighters from mutual aid departments in and around Lincoln County responded to two fires late Friday night in Wiscasset and Dresden. In Wiscasset, residents Kim Lynch and her 11 year-old son managed to escape their two story home at 64 Old Sheepscot Rd. after flames from their garage spread to the rest of the house shortly after 7 p.m. Feb. 11.
Firefighters and emergency personnel from Wiscasset, Dresden, Alna, Woolwich, Edgecomb, Newcastle, and Westport Island responded to the fire of Lynch’s two story home.
“Everyone got out safe, but unfortunately they may have lost a dog,” said Wiscasset Fire Chief Bob Bickford.
Bickford said Lynch thought their dog might not have made it out of the house in time. As of 9 p.m., Bickford was not sure what started the fire.
“Its looking like it started in the garage area,” Bickford said, adding he would return on Saturday morning to assess the damage and fire scene.
According to Bickford, Lynch came out of her house and saw flames coming from a woodpile stacked in her garage. She quickly got her son out of the house and called 911. Bickford said Lynch and her son would stay with a neighbor. The house, while its outside walls were still standing, was destroyed on the inside.
As firefighters worked in near zero degree temperatures, ice forming on their heavy coats, another call came through for a fire at the Bridge Farm in Dresden.
“I hope not,” Bickford said. “That’s a nice old farmhouse.”
While some firefighters continued working in Wiscasset, others wasted no time getting to the Route 27 address. Dresden’s Assistant Fire Chief Steve Lilly, who was first on scene with his crew, said smoke was pouring out of the small rental cottage near the farm’s barn on the property. They quickly doused the flames of a burning mattress inside and checked for other fire sources. According to Lilly and the farm’s owner, Bob Howe, no one was home when the mattress caught fire and no one knows how it started.
Howe said his renters, Andy and Jaime Berhanu, arrived home to find the mattress on fire. They notified Howe right away, who then called the fire department, Howe said.
Lilly said he was thankful for all of the mutual aid support and for the quick response of the homeowners. Firefighters from Boothbay, Wiscasset, Richmond, Pittston, Damariscotta, Topsham, and Dresden responded to the call. Lilly said the cottage sustained some smoke and water damage, but no fire damage. There were no injuries resulting from this fire. Howe said the Berhanu couple would spend the night inside the farm house.
