GARDINER — A small fire Sunday at a vacant house on Water Street in Gardiner caused minor damage and required closure of the roadway for several hours, according to officials.
Chief Rick Seiberg of the Gardiner Fire Department said Monday a neighbor of 494 Water St. reported seeing smoke coming from the two-story brick house shortly after 4 p.m.
When firefighters arrived, they found a small fire on the second floor and extinguished it.
Sieberg said the owner had been doing demolition at the house over the weekend and burned clean demolition debris in the fireplace Saturday.
On Sunday, Sieberg said, firefighters found a fire in a pile of debris that might have been sparked by heat from the previous day’s fire in the house’s old, unlined chimney.
Because the closest fire hydrant is across Water Street, the roadway was closed and traffic detoured around the site so a hose could be run to the hydrant.
Firefighters from Augusta, Togus, Farmingdale, West Gardiner, Pittston and Randolph also responded to the call. Gardiner and Farmingdale firefighters remained at the scene after the other departments had been dismissed.
The property, which has recently changed hands and is now owned by Undisclosed LLC, includes a house and .2-acre lot. It is valued for property tax purposes at $56,400.
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