A devastating, early morning fire at 16 Ocean Side Lane in New Harbor destroyed the house and garage of John and Lynn Ring. The family also lost a cat and at least one vehicle to the March 9 fire.
The Central Lincoln County Ambulance Service transported the Rings to Miles Memorial Hospital.
As of press time, John Ring remains at the hospital in stable condition, according to hospital spokesperson Scott Schott. Lynn Ring has been treated and released.
The Bristol Fire Dept. responded to the scene at 3:07 a.m., followed closely by the Bremen, Damariscotta and South Bristol departments. The Newcastle Fire Dept. stood by at a Bristol fire station.
The fire was “fully involved before we got here,” Pendleton said. As of 8 a.m., Bristol firefighters remained at the scene, awaiting the arrival of an excavator to shift the rubble in order to extinguish “hot spots” under the building.
“We’ll be here for a few hours cooling it off,” Pendleton said. “There’s still a lot of heat in the building.”
Firefighters shuttled water to the scene from a nearby pond. During the night, firefighters feared flaming debris could set neighboring homes aflame, but the fire didn’t cause damage “to any adjacent properties,” Pendleton said.
The fire started in the “garage area,” Pendleton said, but the exact cause remains “undetermined at this time.” Employees of the State Fire Marshal’s Office were investigating at the scene shortly before 8 a.m.
