BOWDOINHAM

Local firefighters were able to keep the blaze that destroyed a garage at 185 Dingley Road in Bowdoinham from spreading to a nearby house Friday afternoon.

Firefighters from Bowdoinham, Bowdoin and Richmond were called to the fire just before 2 p.m.

Among the first firefighters to respond to the fire, Richmond Assistant Fire Chief Mike Vashon said when he arrived the garage was engulfed.

He pointed to the charred branches of a tree behind the garage to show how high the flames were shooting and said flames were blowing across the top of the house. However, the fire was quickly knocked down within 15 minutes.

There was minimal damage to the house, said Bowdoinham Fire Chief Arthur Frizzle.

“Manpower this time of day is obviously the biggest issue,” Frizzle said.

Vashon was initially on scene with an engine and only two other firefighters.

The home and garage belong to JoAnn Mercure, who said her roommate, Ken Whitmore, was home when the fire broke out and called for the fire department. She was at Hannaford at the time and said on her way home, she saw smoke from the highway.

“I don’t know why but my gut said it was mine,” she said.

“It could have been worse,” she added. “I could have lost my house too,”

She’s lived at the home for 12 years and has insurance, though some sentimental items from when her children were young and some antiques were stored in the garage. She said her roommate lost everything he owned, because those belongings were in the garage.

“I’m glad everybody’s OK and the house is OK,” Mercure said. “I thank all those volunteer firefighters.”

An investigator with the fire marshal’s office responded to the scene at around 4 p.m. Frizzle said the investigator couldn’t pinpoint the exact origin, but determined the fire was caused by a wood stove in the garage.