Investigators from the state fire marshal’s office are looking into the cause of a fire that heavily damaged a two-story, condemned house in Mexico Tuesday night.

When firefighters arrived at 9 Oxford St., heavy smoke was coming from a second-floor window, Mexico fire Lt. Jamee Theriault said Wednesday.

The house had been boarded up and all utilities turned off to the building, she said.

No one was supposed to be in the house, but people have gone inside in the past, she said. The interior was in bad shape, and the exterior had been boarded up several times, Theriault said. The town was preparing to tear it down.

The owner of the home, Norman “Bo” Thompson, is incarcerated at a correctional facility for unrelated matters, she said.

After working with Thompson for months to clean up the property, the Select Board voted in September 2025 to have the house and barn demolished.

About 20 firefighters from Mexico and Rumford departments responded to the report about 7:30 p.m. Dixfield and Peru firefighters were called to stand by at the Mexico and Rumford fire stations.

The building, which is one street away from Main Street, was previously a single-family residence, Theriault said.

Oxford County Sheriff’s Office and Med-Care Ambulance also responded. The Mexico Public Works Department sanded the area because the building is on a hill, she said. Mexico Water Department also responded.

Firefighters cleared the scene early Wednesday morning.