ORANGE — An apartment caught flames late Friday night, causing significant damage to the Holtshire Road property, but leaving no one injured, authorities said.
A fire started around 11:30 p.m. in the wood home, requiring the response of several towns into early Saturday morning. The state fire marshal and Orange Fire Department are investigating the fire, though it is believed the fire was accidental.
“They’ve done a great job, by all involved,” Orange Fire Chief James Young said.
Jennifer Mieth, spokeswoman for the state fire marshal, said on Monday that the fire is “still under investigation but it doesn’t appear suspicious,” and that the investigation is focusing on accidental causes.
The owner of the property, Gerald Stone, said this was the first time something like this has happened to him and he’ll have to figure out a plan of action moving forward.
The property listing for the building says it’s a three-family duplex, built in 1993, with seven bedrooms and 15 rooms in total. In 2018 it was valued at about $237,000. Currently, 13 people live in the building.
Young said the department was still determining the total cost of damages. He said 25 percent of the building had fire damage and the remaining amount had water and smoke damage.
Residents gathered as the fire crews worked to control the flames. Dense smoke escaped the pointed roof, on a night with rain just heavier than a mist.
Half of the roof of the home was burnt through, while the other half more or less remained in tact. Young said the town’s building inspector will have to figure out if the home is salvageable.
In the meantime, the building is not inhabitable, Young said.
The fire and heavy smoke brought in fire departments from Orange, Athol, New Salem, Erving, Turners Falls, Phillipston, Warwick, Greenfield, Gill and Barre, as well as Northfield EMS.