SKOWHEGAN — A fire at a mobile home early Thursday morning caused major damage to the structure, displaced three residents and sent two people to the hospital.
The cause of the fire at the 3 Dartmouth St. residence is under investigation by the Maine Office of State Fire Marshal, according to Chief Ronnie Rodriguez of the Skowhegan Fire Department, who declined to speculate on a possible cause due to the ongoing investigation.
Firefighters responded to the home shortly before 1 a.m. and had the fire under control within a half hour, according to Rodriguez.
“There was a lot of fire upon arrival,” Rodriguez said.
The main structure of the mobile home suffered major damage and is currently uninhabitable, according to Rodriguez. The Red Cross was notified to provide assistance to the three residents, he said.
Two people were taken to the hospital for treatment of smoke inhalation, although Rodriguez said he was not sure if they were among the three known residents.
The initial response of Skowhegan’s on-duty crew, along with the town’s call force and mutual aid assistance from the Norridgewock, Fairfield, Waterville, Canaan, Cornville, Madison, and Athens Fire Departments, stopped the fire from spreading beyond the main structure, Rodriguez said. Redington-Fairview EMS and the Skowhegan Highway Department also provided assistance.
An attached garage with a vehicle inside was spared from the flames.
Fires tend to spread more quickly in mobile homes than in other kinds of structures because of how they are constructed, Rodriguez said.
“They just don’t fare well,” Rodriguez said. “Once a fire starts in a mobile home, it spreads pretty rapidly.”
Despite the visual appearance of the fire’s damage to the home, Rodriguez praised the efforts of first responders.
“I think the people in and around the Skowhegan area are fortunate to have the caliber and quality of firefighters and professionals that they do,” Rodriguez said. “We rely on each other to help each other and solve problems. It’s a great team that we have in this area.”
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