SANFORD, Maine — A family was displaced following a fire that destroyed their two-story apartment Tuesday.
Firefighters responded to 128 Emery St. after receiving a report of a blaze sometime after 10 a.m. When they arrived, they saw flames shooting from the back door and first-floor window of the apartment and smoke billowing from the open front door, from which the occupants likely had fled, according to Assistant Fire Chief of Operations Rick Smith.
Smith said he did not know how many family members were at home at the time of the fire. He said one pet, a rat, perished in the incident.
While firefighters quickly knocked the fire down, the incident caused significant damage, Smith said.
“The apartment itself is a total loss, but the building is not,” Smith said.
While the adjacent apartment in the complex was not damaged by the blaze, the family that lives there may need to wait a bit before they return home, Smith added.
“We’ll have to do an investigation and see if there is any smoke or chemicals that got in there,” he said.
