Dryer fire guts home

Houlton Pioneer Times Photo/Joseph Cyr
MONDAY FIRE — Houlton firefighter Anthony “Jughead” Benn knocks out a window to the 16 Fair St. home of David and Pam Nickerson of Houlton Monday afternoon as firefighters battled a stubborn blaze. The fire started from a dryer located on the first floor and quickly spread through the building. The home was not insured.
By Joseph Cyr
Staff Writer
    HOULTON — A clothes dryer is being blamed for a fire that destroyed the 16 Fair St. home of David and Pam Nickerson Monday afternoon.
    According to Houlton Fire Chief Milton Cone, the fire originated from a clothes dryer located in the kitchen and quickly spread throughout the walls of the two-story house, making it difficult for firefighters to attack.
    Cone said the building was not insured and many of the items in the home were destroyed or damaged.
    The fire was reported at 1:30 p.m. via a 9-1-1 call placed from inside the home. The Nickerson’s adult children, Olivia and Ryan, were home at the time of the fire, but escaped uninjured.
    “Upon our arrival, flames were visible from the first and second floor,” Cone said.
    According to the incident report, Ryan Nickerson started some laundry and then went upstairs. Olivia Nickerson was in the living room when she noticed an orange glow coming from the kitchen. When she entered the kitchen, she found the wall behind the dryer ablaze.
    The chief said fighting the fire proved difficult.
    “There was extensive damage due to the type of construction found at the house,” Cone said. “The flames got into the walls and spread quickly from the first floor clear to the roof. We were not able to gain access to the fire, because it was in the walls.”
    Twenty-three firefighters and three pieces of apparatus were used to combat the flames. The Houlton Water Company also severed electrical service to the building. The fire was under control at 4:45 p.m. and the last firefighter was dismissed from the scene at 5:20 p.m.
    Cone said Monday’s blaze was the worst-case scenario when dealing with a dryer fire.
    “There are usually two reasons for a dryer fire,” he said. “One is there is an electrical problem. The other is an overheated dryer from lint buildup. Due to the amount of damage in this case, we can’t determine which of those two factors was the cause.”
    Cone added there was some concern of the fire spreading to an adjacent vacant building. Three vehicles were also located on the property and were removed to prevent the possibility of explosions.
    “It was a frustrating fire from our point of view because we could not get to the source of the fire,” Cone said. “This was a situation where we couldn’t get to the source of the flames so we had to wait for it to burn through to give us access. There are some voids in a house where there just isn’t access so you have to dig and chop your way through it.”