RICHMOND, Maine —Two people were taken to an Augusta hospital and three more were displaced for the night after a fire broke out Sunday evening in an apartment house on Front Street in Richmond.
At around 7:50 p.m., a downstairs tenant reported heavy smoke in the upstairs of the apartment building at 381 Front St. When firefighters arrived, all of the tenants were outside.
A woman who lives in an upstairs apartment was taken to MaineGeneral Medical Center in Augusta. Richmond Police Chief Scott MacMaster said it didn’t appear she suffered any injuries in the fire but had pre-existing health conditions that concerned emergency personnel.
An elderly woman who lives on the lower level with her husband suffered from smoke inhalation and was taken to MaineGeneral as well.
An investigator from the state fire marshal’s office arrived on scene to investigate the cause of the fire, which started in an upstairs bedroom and was contained to that room. Firefighters had the fire under control quickly and then checked to make sure it hadn’t spread to the attic. The interior of the building sustained smoke damage, and crews had to break windows to vent the structure.
MacMaster said five people in total were displaced for the night by the fire, including the two taken to the hospital. Other tenants were staying with family or friends.
Firefighters from Richmond, Bowdoin, Bowdoinham and Dresden responded, as well as North East Mobile Health Services with two ambulances. Richmond firefighters cleared the scene at approximately 11:14 p.m.