MADISON — State fire marshals on Monday were still investigating the massive fire that destroyed multiple apartments on Main Street.
Sgt. Joel Davis of the fire marshal’s service said the cause of the fire on Saturday had not been determined yet, but estimated one would be released in the next few days. He said investigators are still conducting interviews.
“They’re still working on it,” Davis said.
The day after the blaze, fire marshals had reported that the tenant of the unit where the fire began had been smoking cigarettes in his apartment just prior to reporting the fire. The fire on 152 Main St. began around noon on Saturday. About 50 firefighters from departments across the region responded to fight the blaze, which was finally extinguished around 4:30 p.m.
Virginia Weems, owner of the building, was outside the charred structure Monday with tenant Barbara Turner as a plumber made repairs. The apartment Turner lives in with her husband did not burn but sustained smoke damage.
No one was hurt in the fire, but four of the seven apartments were gutted. The four units were in the front section of the building.
Madison Fire Chief Don French said the four units were destroyed, and the remaining three units suffered “heavy smoke damage.”
Tenants in the three surviving units were able to return to their homes later Saturday evening. All told, French said there were probably between 10 and 12 people living in the building at the time of the fire.
French said he didn’t know if the units that suffered smoke damage were habitable or not, but said those displaced by the fire were put up in two different Skowhegan hotels. He said electricity had been restored to the Main Street building.
French also commended the community for its effort in providing aid the day of the fire. Food and coffee were donated as well as buses for the firefighters to stay warm in, as temperatures dipped into single digits the day of the fire.
“The town really reached out and went up and beyond,” French said.
Colin Ellis — 861-9253
cellis@centralmaine.com
Twitter: @colinoellis
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