Firefighter falls 2 floors battling house blaze

SKOWHEGAN – Skowhegan Fire Chief Tom Keene admitted Monday morning, “I don’t know if I’ve ever been that scared at a fire scene.”

Keene referred to the emotions he felt when earlier in the day, one of his firefighters fell two stories inside a burning house.

Firefighter Steven Hardy was crawling along the second floor of the home on Route 2, owned by Carole Fitzmaurice and Gary Brooks, according to Keene.

The Fire Department had responded to a report of a structure fire at 3:40 a.m.

Hardy, wearing breathing apparatus, was searching for the cause of the fire in thick smoke.

Suddenly, the floor gave way beneath the firefighter, and he plummeted into the basement, where apparently faulty electrical wiring had ignited the fire, Keene said.

“It is a miracle,” the chief said. “Although he was transported to the hospital, Steve only had a bruised knee.”

With air tanks and a heavy, fire-retardant coat, Hardy’s equipment added 40 pounds to his body weight. “We are all very thankful he wasn’t hurt,” Keene said.

Keene said there was no delay in rescuing Hardy, who was quickly found in the basement and taken to Redington-Fairview General Hospital for treatment.

The home, located about a quarter-mile from the Norridgewock town line, was a total loss, said Keene.

“It is still standing, but it is gutted,” he said. “They lost everything.”

The couple had insurance, Keene said.

Skowhegan was assisted at the fire by Norridgewock for fire crews, and tankers were provided by Canaan, Madison and East Madison.