NORWAY – Stunned neighbors gathered to watch Friday night as a downtown rooming house went up in flames.

The fire at Beal Street Rooms was reported around 5:40 p.m. It was unknown if any occupants of the structure at 69 Beal St. were injured. A neighbor said some of those who escaped the flames were school-age children.

The structure consisted of two two-story buildings connected by a lower structure with a porch. Though flames were initially only visible in one of the buildings and the connecting structure, they soon spread into the adjoining building. It was not immediately clear how many people were in the buildings.

Amy Richards, who lives in the house across from Beal Street Rooms, said firefighters evacuated surrounding buildings as they attacked the blaze. The building’s landlord, Sandy Anderson, lives there and rents out 10 rooms, Richards said.

“They’re usually always occupied,” she said.

Vern Maxfield, town manager of Woodstock, lives on the corner of Marston and Beal streets. He saw the fire when returning from an errand.

“The flames were coming out both ends,” he said. “It’s a shame. It’s going to put quite a number of people out of the home.”

Maxfield said the home had recently been remodeled.

The quick movement of the fire, which sent flames shooting through the roof, elicited astonished reactions.

“We were coming to pick something up and there it was,” said Brady Shaughnesy of Oxford, who was visiting a friend who lives across the street. “It’s insane. It’s crazy.”

“This is horrible,” said Carol Fanjoy, who lives on nearby Hazen Street. “This is unbelievable.”

Fanjoy, a custodian at Paris Elementary School, said she contacted the school’s principal to arrange for shelter if needed for those displaced by the fire. She said she is willing to shelter anyone displaced by the fire, including pets, at her home at 9 Hazen St.

“We’re a village. We need to take care of each other,” she said.

Those wishing to contact Fanjoy may call her at 739-2335 or call Paris Elementary School.

“When there are children involved, I want to do whatever I can to help,” Fanjoy said.

A Paris Fire Department dispatcher said a power grid was shut down during firefighting efforts, briefly darkening portions of Norway and Paris.

Several Web sites list the address as formerly containing Convenient Living Retirement Home.

Fire officials remained at the scene hours after the fire was brought under control. The investigation was expected to continue into Saturday morning.