ORRINGTON, Maine — A fire that was accidentally started by a home repair contractor Monday afternoon caused thousands of dollars of damage to a home on Dornish Road, an Orrington Fire Department official said Monday.
The fire at 17 Dornish Road was reported at 3:48 p.m. according to Assistant Fire Chief Scott Stewart.
He said the fire began shortly after a contractor who was working on the house accidentally pounded a nail through the house’s main electrical wire, located up near the attic of the 1 1/2 story structure, Stewart said.
Though the fire did not start right away, the contractor called the fire department because a great deal of heat was coming from the area.
The heat eventually started a fire that damaged parts of the attic, the roof, the siding and some of the house’s ceilings, among other things, Stewart said. He said the house also appeared to have sustained some structural damage. He estimated damage at least $15,000 to $20,000.
Stewart said the homeowner, whose name was not immediately available, is insured and that no one was injured. The homeowner reportedly is staying with family or friends in the area until repairs can be made, he said.
Wow, what a crazy happening…..on the plus side, I guess one can call it job security….
“Stewart said the homeowner, whose name was not immediately available, is insured and that no one was injured.” If the homeowner’s insurance pays off on this they’re crazy. That’s why contractors(in this case, hopefully) have liability insurance since the burden of the loss appears to rest wholly on the contractor’s shoulders.
Subrogate. Don’t worry. If the contractor has insurance, they will pay. But this will be a taffy pull.
I hope everything goes o.k. for the home owner. As we all know a lot of times things are lost that just can’t be replaced. I hope that’s not the case for them.
now that is one expensive “change order” for this home-owner!
I was at a bar and this story was on the TV behind the bar, and some drunk guy up back shouted “Bush’s fault!”. The entire bar broke up! lol
guess you had to be there…
yes, it was very interesting. A few were mumbling about Bush’s wars and how it had cost our schools and with less teachers for less pay, our students and ultimately craftsman such as this person who set the fire didn’t get a good education. Others said it was lack of teaching standards and we had enough money flooding the system and the people such as this workman could make more money and get ebtter education if he/she weren’t paying so much in taxes.
One old man at the end of the bar said “it’s none of that, I just hate Bush cuz he looks like Aldred E Neuman (Mad Magazine) and I ain’t never votin’ for him agin!” Another big guffaw from the assembled drinkers.
Face it, Obama will win this, 58% to 39% Romney, and the extra education money WILL help people from being uneducated bumbler like this worker. The wars are over, Guantanamo is closed and we can spend the war bonus money on education.
huh? The wars are over an Guantanomo is closed? I didn’t realize that. Someone should tell our troops in Afganistan. Or just don’t believe everything you hear at a bar.
Didn’t name the so called contractor or the home owner ?? Why bother to do the story at all ?? Strange…
“Stewart said the homeowner, whose name was not immediately available,”
Only if you don’t have the internet.
http://www.whitepages.com/search/FindNearby?street=17+dornish+rd&where=Orrington%2C+ME
Scott is a insurance adjuster now??? HUMMMM
Hmmmm….since many firefighters hold other jobs maybe Scott has some experience in construction?
LOL I was wondering about it if he thinks “the house’s main electrical wire” is near the attic. Maybe it was a misquote.
This is an interesting twist to the usual plumber’s torch reason, though!
My house’s main electrical wire is near the attic.
It attaches to the gable end of the house near the peak and then runs down the side of the house, through the wall and into the electrical panel in the basement.
Ya, I always considered the main wire as the one from the drop, to the meter and the entrance panel.
I thought of that, but just how long a nail was he using to go through a wall? Even in an attic, there’s no reason to nail anything directly to the outside sheathing.
I can’t picture it so I’ll just stay with the misquote angle. :)
I was picturing the contractor working on the outside of the house.
Id thought of that too, but a drop stays outside until it reaches the meter.
I think it was Mark Twain that said that “the most expensive home repair is done by amateurs” I hope this contractor is insured and restores this person’s property 100%.
Congrats to the fire department. They saved more than the celler this time.
why would you call him a contractor if the homeowner’s insurance has to cover it?
One should pull main breaker when heat is detected….
Yikes- talk about having a bad day at work!
“Stewart said the homeowner, whose name was not immediately available, is insured and that no one was injured.”
It doesn’t really matter if the homeowner was insured. The contractor’s insurance is liable for any damages.