PITTSTON — A fire apparently ignited by some discarded materials Wednesday damaged a home on Wiscasset Road, the fire chief said.
Pittston Fire Chief Joshua Johnson said firefighters were called to 850 Wiscasset Road at about 4 p.m. after the homeowner discovered the fire. No one was injured in the fire.
“The homeowner did exactly the right thing by calling 911 immediately,” Johnson said. “Not everybody does that. A lot of people would try to put it out and wait 10 minutes to call. I can’t praise him enough.”
Johnson said he was told the discarded materials that sparked the blaze may have been cigarette butts in a container.
Gardiner firefighters Chris Poremby, left, and Brandon Melanson work to knock down a fire Wednesday on Wiscasset Road in Pittston. Photo courtesy of Joshua Johnson
The fire damaged the siding on the exterior of the house and spread into the roof over the porch, with smoke and water damage in the kitchen. Because the fire was knocked down quickly, firefighters salvage-covered everything they could and used high-expansion foam on the fire to reduce the amount of damage.
Johnson said because the fire traveled into some void spaces in the roof, he didn’t want to send firefighters home before ensuring no hot spots remained.
“We do our best with salvage covers before we do our overhaul,” he said, “and we cover as much as we can, but there’s always some water damage.”
A salvage cover is a heat-resistant waterproof tarp.
Johnson estimated the damage caused by the fire around $30,000. Pittston property records show the property belongs to Robert and Marlene Lamoreau.
In addition to Pittston, firefighters from Gardiner, Farmingdale, Randolph and West Gardiner responded.
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