Several businesses, including a general store and art gallery, burned late Wednesday night in a fire on the Port Clyde waterfront.
The fire started about 11 p.m. in the Dip Net Restaurant on Cold Storage Road along the waterfront, St. George Fire Chief Michael Smith said. Crews from nine towns were called to control the blaze, and there were no injuries. Photos posted on social media show flames rising high above the buildings and smoke visible far from the scene.
The restaurant building and others near it collapsed as a result of the fire, which was still smoldering as of 1 p.m. Thursday. Smith said the fire departments were using fresh water from two sources to fight the fire, including a marsh in Tenants Harbor.
The fire burned through three core businesses: the restaurant, Port Clyde General Store and a ferry terminal nestled together. It also destroyed an art gallery owned by Linda Bean that had three original paintings by famed artist Jamie Wyeth, an employee said.
The narrow street, packed with parked cars, hindered efforts to combat the blaze overnight, the Courier Gazette of Rockland reported. The state fire marshal’s office is investigating the cause of the fire, and the Dip Net restaurant notified the federal government of 12 layoffs.
“This fire is devastating for the beautiful and historic village of Port Clyde,” U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree, a Democrat who lives in North Haven, wrote on Facebook. “I am monitoring the situation and keeping this tight-knit, midcoast community and these businesses in my thoughts.”
BDN writer Michael Shepherd contributed to this report.