STANDISH – A woman working alone in a variety store early Wednesday morning was robbed and locked in a back room while the robber apparently tried to set the building on fire, authorities said.

Rebecca Lavallee was rescued minutes after the Cumberland County Sheriff’s dispatch center received a call about an alarm at the Sebago Village Variety Store, according to Detective Gerard Brady.

Deputy James Estabrook found Lavallee screaming and pounding in a locked storage area. A fire was burning in the office and one was smoldering in the hall.

The Standish fire department arrived a few minutes later and put out the flames. Lavallee did not require medical attention.