Tuesday Fire Displaces Several Waterville Families

Several Waterville families were displaced by a fire that heavily damaged an apartment building on Silver Place.  Fortunately, no one was hurt in the blaze.

According to the KJ, the Waterville Fire Department got the call about the fire at 5 Silver Place (a dead end extension of Silver Street) at about Noon.  Firefighters say the fire appears to have started in an apartment on the first floor, near the back of the building.  Damage was most contained to just a few of the units.

The firefighters did an amazing job knocking the fire out, considering it was "fully involved" by the time they reached the scene.  They did encounter a few hiccups that caused them to need a few hours to completely put the fire out.  They had to deal with a frozen fire hydrant and a vent that allowed oxygen into the attic space.

According to the owner the building, which has seven apartments, had 17 people residing there.  We're hearing that those displaced have been put up in hotels by the local chapter of the American Red Cross.  The Red Cross is always helping the residents find new places to live.

The owner has not yet had a chance to get inside the building to determine the total damage.  However, he estimates that four of the apartments are a total loss, while the other three apartments have heavy smoke damage.

The Waterville Fire Department was helped by firefighters from Fairfield-Benton, Oakland, Skowhegan and Winslow.  Additionally as temperatures were in the mid-teens, a bus from a local school was brought to the scene of the fire so that the building's residents could warm up.