GORHAM – State fire investigators and Gorham police determined on Wednesday morning that a pre-dawn fire at a Gorham home at 34 Highland Ave. on Saturday was accidental.

Lt. Chris Sanborn of the Gorham Police Department said the fire started in the garage and possibly was caused by a cigarette.

“The house is pretty much a total loss,” Sanborn said.

Gorham Fire Chief Robert Lefebvre said Monday that the two-alarm fire at about 4:30 a.m. destroyed the garage.

According to Gorham tax records, Timothy McGarrie owns the six-room, Cape Cod-style house. The total value of the property for tax purposes, according to town assessing records, is $145,500.

McGarrie could not be reached for comment by the American Journal deadline on Wednesday. The telephone at the home is not in service.

Sanborn said a husband and wife were home when the fire erupted. Both escaped the blaze and Lefebvre said there were no injuries. Sanborn believed that the family is staying with relatives.

Explosions at the fire were determined to be spray paint containers in the garage. Several musical instruments appeared to have been saved from the blaze.

Firefighters from Scarborough, Standish and Windham responded to the scene in a residential area in Gorham Village.

A fire destroyed a garage and caused extensive damage to this home at 34 Highland Ave. in Gorham last weekend. Staff photo by Robert Lowell