Two passing motorists alerted an Alfred couple that their garage was on fire Saturday, allowing them to escape from the attached home, according to Alfred Fire Rescue Deputy Chief Jarrett Clarke.

Firefighters responded to the heavy fire Saturday afternoon at a three-car garage attached to a home at 280 Gebung Road.

The garage was destroyed, and the large home received “devastating damage,” Clarke said, though he was not sure Sunday whether the home is a total loss.

When Alfred firefighters arrived at the scene around 4:30 p.m., there was heavy fire coming from the garage, and it was starting to spread to the home.

“There were two good Samaritans who stopped and alerted the residents to the fire. Thankfully, they did,” Clarke said, adding that act made a difference. “They had working smoke detectors. That would have alerted them at some point, but having the early notification from those bystanders was key.”

An estimated 18 fire departments were called in for several reasons, including the intensity of the fire, a lack of water supply, and the remote location of the large home and garage.

The road to the home was long, Clarke said, so water had to be brought in from a fairly long distance. The fire was mostly contained to the garage, but had it fully jumped to the home, putting it out would have been difficult, given that the home was about 4,000 square feet, Clarke said.

“Luckily that didn’t come to fruition,” he said.

Fire departments from Sanford, Biddeford, Waterboro, Kennebunk, Limerick, Hollis, Shapleigh and Newfield, Acton and other communities helped put out the fire. “I lost count,” Clarke said.

Crews were able to keep the fire mostly to the garage with some damage to the home. The occupants of the home were able to stay with family, and the Red Cross is assisting.

The fire was extinguished by around 7 p.m., but fire crews stayed until 11 p.m. Saturday to ensure no hot spots would flare up and reignite, the deputy chief said.

None of the 50-plus firefighters who battled the blaze were injured.

The cause of the fire is not known, Clarke said, but is not considered suspicious. The Maine State Fire Marshal’s Office is investigating.

The couple was able to retrieve items from their home, the deputy chief said. “In firefighting terms, I call that something. If they can get memories and pictures” from the home “that’s something.”

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