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Cause of fire unknown at this time

4 mins read
Firefighters at the scene of a structure fire on the Whittier Road.
Firefighters at the scene of a structure fire on the Whittier Road.
Wilton Fire Chief Sonny Dunham watches as firefighters haul a hose toward the front entrance.
Wilton Fire Chief Sonny Dunham watches as firefighters haul a hose toward the front entrance.

[Update 3:16 PM] – Fire Chief Terry Bell confirmed that eight individuals were displaced by a Tuesday morning blaze at a Whittier Road residence, the cause of which has yet to be determined.

The property was owned by Christian Smith and Pamela Boyker-Smith.

While the State Fire Marshal’s Office is attempting to determine a cause for the fire, Bell said, the high level of damage to the mobile home and its attached addition may make such an effort difficult, if not impossible. The residence, which was uninsured, was destroyed by the blaze and deemed a “total loss” by Bell.

The fire department responded to the residence at 9:15 a.m. after two hunters driving past the 877 Whittier Road residence saw smoke. The hunters assisted a teenager, the lone resident home at the time of the fire, in rescuing three dogs and several puppies. No people were hurt in the blaze, although a lizard pet is believed to have died.

Responding departments included Farmington, Wilton, New Sharon and Chesterville, as previously reported, as well as the town of Temple, Bell said. Approximately 30 firefighters fought the fire, with “plenty of water” provided via tankers.

Fire crews began clearing the scene around noon, reopening the Whittier Road. All responding units had cleared by 2 p.m.

The Red Cross is providing assistance to the eight residents in the aftermath of the fire.

[Update 1:22 PM] – A single lane of the Whittier Road has been reopened for traffic.

Farmington Fire Chief Terry Bell pries metal siding off the residence to expose the fire burning within the walls.
Farmington Fire Chief Terry Bell pries metal siding off the residence.

[Original story posted at 12:15 PM] FARMINGTON – A home on Whittier Road was destroyed Tuesday morning, with the Red Cross reporting that it is providing assistance to eight people who lived there.

A mobile home and attached addition at 877 Whittier Road were gutted by fire, which was reported to local fire departments just after 9 a.m. Two hunters driving along Whittier Road saw the smoke and stopped, successfully rescuing dogs before firefighters arrived.

Firefighters used tankers and hoses to knock down the worst of the fire, then spent the remainder of the morning prying away aluminum siding and insulation to expose and extinguish flames burning in the walls. A nearby tarpaulin garage was also damaged in the fire, while flames were prevented from spreading to a nearby shed.

Responding departments included Farmington, Wilton, New Sharon and Chesterville, as well as NorthStar EMS. Farmington Police Department and Franklin County Sheriff’s Office personnel blocked traffic on the Whittier Road and at the Lucy Knowles Road intersection.

The State Fire Marshal’s Office dispatched an investigator to the scene, as is standard procedure for structure fires.

While no people were hurt as a result of the fire, a number of reptile pets are believed to have perished.

A spokesman for the American Red Cross said that a member of its local Disaster Action Response Team is assisting the eight people who were displaced by the fire. Family members will be offered a place to stay, food and other essentials, as well as financial assistance and community referrals in the next few days.

Fire crews began clearing the scene around noon.

The Red Cross says that eight people were displaced as a result of the fire.
The Red Cross says that eight people were displaced as a result of the fire.
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22 Comments

  1. How can we help??? Clothing Sizes?? I assume with 8 some of them are children? Shoe Sizes??

  2. My heart goes out to the family. We are willing to help however we can with some furniture and bedding.

  3. Thank you all for your support!!! A GoFundMe page has been set up for the family, you can access it using the following link:
    https://www.gofundme.com/63j593ek

    All donations are much appreciated and can be dropped off at the Pawn ship in Farmington, located on the Farmington Falls Rd just after Arkay Pizza.

    Clothing sizes are as follows:
    Girls size 6
    Baby boy 18m-2t
    boys 10-12
    boys size 7-8
    teenage boy size large shirt, pant size 30-30
    Adult men’s size 36-30 and xlarge shirt
    Adult women’s size 10-12 pants and large shirt
    Adult women’s size 14 pants and xxlarge shirt

    This community is truly amazing and the family can’t thank you enough!

  4. Pawnsters is accepting clothing and other donations for them. Clothing needed is size 6 girls, 18-24 month boys, size 7-8 boys, size 10-12 boys, size 30-30 and men’s large for teen, 36-30 men’s and xl-2x men’s shirts. Size 10-12 woman’s pants and large woman’s shirts. I can imagine that other items are needed as well, such as toiletry and personal care items. There is also a gofundme account started for them as well.
    https://www.gofundme.com/63j593ek

  5. Christian and I want to say thank you to all for the unbelievable outreach of love and support we have received from our community, family, friends, and our amazing co workers at both Mt Blue RSD and Farmington Ford! You all are truly amazing and we feel very blessed to have such a wonderful support system! Unfortunately Christian and I didn’t have insurance due to a one month lapse when money was tight after paying for almost 9 years this was new to us and is due to the year of the trailor… We are taking this one day at a time and starting all over will not be easy…. but we have faith and thanks to the incredible people in our lives and the strength of our kids through loosing everything we will be ok! We thank you all so much and are asking for everyone to keeps us, especially the kids in their prayers!

  6. We can provide your family with winter coats! The youth group at Old South church operates “Coat & Cupboard,” at 227 Main Street, which offers free, clean coats and sweaters to the community. Usually, we are open on the first Sunday of the month. But we can pull together a selection of coats–in the sizes you’ve listed–and drop them off at Pawnsters this week.

  7. I love you Pam and Christian …one day at a time! This is an amazing community and are there when we need them. You kids will come out of this even stronger! I am here for you.

  8. Trying to help.. yes, items can be left at the door. We have been picking the items left outside up periodically.

    UPDATE: the family will be moving into a temporary home on Sunday. They are now in need of bureaus, pillows, kitchen table, chairs, blankets, totes for storage, coffee table, end tables, Tupperware, etc.

    The link to their GoFundMe page is as follows: https://www.gofundme.com/63j593ek

    All donations are greatly appreciated!!

  9. Prayers for you Pam & Christian! We are so glad you are all ok!! – Casey & Chad Hutchinson

  10. GEM…..Thank you!
    Please mail any monetary donations to:

    Carolyn Boyker
    535 Bailey Hill Road
    Farmington, Maine 04938

  11. As of today, Oct 26th, is there an updated list for items needed?

    Prayers are with the family.

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