TRENTON, Maine — A structure fire Saturday night on Route 3 destroyed a mobile home and claimed the lives of three pets, according to a local official.
The were no human injuries from the fire, the cause of which has not yet been determined, Trenton Fire Chief Steve Corson said Sunday.
Ellsworth firefighters assisted Trenton Saturday night and then got help from them Sunday morning when they responded to a fire inside an apartment at the corner of Park and Oak streets, Ellsworth Fire Chief Richard Tupper said Sunday. The Maine fire marshal’s office has been asked to investigate the cause of both fires.
Corson said the Trenton fire was reported around 7:15 Saturday evening by the owner of a business where the mobile home is located. Flames were coming out of the mobile home when the first firefighters arrived a few minutes later.
He so no people were in the dwelling at the time but that three pets — a dog, a cat and a gerbil — all perished in the flames. The mobile home was insured, he said.
Traffic on Route 3 was reduced to one lane of alternating directions as firefighters tried to put out the blaze, according to Corson. Approximately 20 firefighters from Trenton, Ellsworth, Hancock and Lamoine, plus a tanker crew from Bar Harbor, responded to the scene and were there until around 11 p.m., Corson said.
The apartment fire in Ellsworth was reported around 5:30 a.m., according to Tupper. All tenants got out of the building safely and, when firefighters arrived minutes later, they looked in through a window and saw flames hitting the ceiling, he said.
Tupper said the fire initially was reported as starting in a chair but firefighters are not sure of the cause. He said a quick call to 911 and the rapid response of his department, despite the freshly fallen snow, limited damage to the one apartment in the building.
“The outcome could have been a lot worse,” Tupper said.
Three tenants in the damaged apartment, which is not habitable, have been put in touch with the Red Cross, according to the Ellsworth fire chief. One of them was taken to the local hospital in Ellsworth to be treated for smoke inhalation but has since been released, he said.
Tupper said about 10 firefighters from Ellsworth and Lamoine responded to the scene, while more from Trenton stood by in case they were needed.
