Sweltering weather keeps pressure

The nearly 90-degree temperature made for a tough fight against a fire that gutted an abandoned home in Deer Isle on Thursday morning.Four companies — from Deer Isle, Brooklin, Sedgwick and Stonington — were necessary to provide adequate manpower, said Jim Foley, assistant fire chief in Deer Isle.

The large numbers of firefighters were needed so that each crew could work in 15-minute rotations, Foley said. While one crew fought the fire, which burned the second floor and roof of an abandoned house on Sunset Crossroad, the others received food and water from paramedics, who monitored each firefighter’s vitals before they went back to work.With turnout gear and air packs, fire crews risked health problems if they stayed in the hot building much longer than 15 minutes, Foley said.

“As soon as you get hot, you can stop functioning so well,” Foley said. “We didn’t want anyone to get hurt.”The fire was reported by Michael Kovac, who lives in a mobile home just a stone’s throw away from the home that burned. Kovac said he saw the fire and smoke around 10 a.m.“I went out to check the mail and smoke a cigarette,” he said. “I just saw tons of smoke and fire coming out of the roof, so I called 911.”

Firefighters knocked down the bulk of the blaze within about 15 minutes, Foley said, but additional flare-ups kept sparking in “void” spaces, between walls and above ceiling tiles. Because the fire had burned through the floor of the second story, crews had to punch holes the roof and attack from above.Kovac and his girlfriend, Meranda Smith, said they suspected a bolt of lightning from Wednesday night’s storm caused the fire. Smith said that around 3 a.m., the couple was awakened by the storm, and said she thought she smelled something burning at that China Porcelain tile.

Foley said firefighters could see no obvious natural cause of the blaze, and wouldn’t speculate. An investigator from the Office of the Maine State Fire Marshal was scheduled to arrive Thursday afternoon to begin probing for the fire’s origin.

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Police officers were dispatched to the 900 block of West Exchange Street July 6 on reports of a man pointing a gun at someone. Officers stopped the vehicle of a 26-year-old man who lived nearby, and drugs and loaded guns were found, according to officers. The man was charged with possession of marijuana, trafficking in marijuana, possession of criminal tools and carrying a concealed weapon (three counts).

A 53-year-old Biruta Avenue man was charged with disseminating matter harmful to juveniles July 8. According to officers, the man was drinking, using drugs and watching pornography. Though he paused the movie when a 12-year-old girl entered the room, she could still see the images on the television, according to the police report. The man also was charged with possession of drug paraphernalia.

A 19-year-old Stow man was charged with possession of heroin and possession of drug abuse instruments July 8. Stopped at Copley Road and Storer Avenue for a traffic violation, officers found heroin and a syringe on his person.

A 19-year-old Oakdale Avenue man reported he answered the door July 9 to two unknown black males between 17 and 25 in gray hoodies and masks. They ordered him to the floor and hit him in the back of the head, causing minor injuries, before leaving with a TV, video game system and games and smartphone, according to the police report.

A 29-year-old Dominion Drive man was charged with having weapons under disability, carrying a concealed weapon, improper handling of a firearm in a motor vehicle and receiving stolen property July 9 after being stopped at North Hawkins Avenue and Cliffside Drive. The man, who has a previous felony conviction, was in possession of a loaded .45-caliber handgun, according to officers.

A 40-year-old Mull Avenue man was apprehended and charged with two counts of aggravated robbery and possession of marijuana and booked into the Summit County Jail July 12. Around 10:30 p.m. that evening, the man allegedly confronted a 25-year-old woman stopped at a traffic light at North Main and Olive streets by walking up to her car, stating he had a gun and ordering the female out of her car. When she refused, he slammed her head against the headrest several times, according to the police report. She took her keys out of the ignition and fled out the passenger side door, according to the report. The same evening, a 29-year old-male reported he also was approached at the same intersection by a man who said he had a gun and wanted the victim’s car, but he was able to put his car in reverse and drive off.

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