Motel fire cause stumps officials Little left of East Machias facility to determine ignition source

EAST MACHIAS – There is no way to determine the cause of the Saturday morning fire that destroyed the Maineland Motel, according to the State Fire Marshal’s Office.

Inspector Jon Morse was at the scene Monday morning, but said that so much of the 30-unit building was destroyed that it was impossible to determine the ignition source.

“It had a wide-open attic and cellar and [a fire] will go from one end to the other,” Morse said as he surveyed the rubble, the remains of 10 units and the home of Harold and Barbara Prescott, the couple who own the Maineland.

Barbara Prescott said Sunday that the couple escaped with only the clothes on their backs after their son called their home and said he’d heard a report of a fire at the Maineland.

Looking out the window, Prescott said, she saw the flames and the couple jumped out of bed, threw on some clothes and ran from the home.

The blaze was reported about 1 a.m. Saturday when a snowplow operator for the state Department of Transportation saw flames coming from the center of the motel.

More than 50 firefighters from East Machias and neighboring towns battled the fire for more than 12 hours.

Because of the open ceiling and basement, firefighters had to go to a room that wasn’t burning and tear out the ceiling so they could fight the fire from inside, according to Clinton Gardner, assistant fire chief for East Machias.

Morse said Monday that because of Saturday’s weather, the spot where the flames were first visible provides only a general idea of where the fire began.

The motel was being renovated and there were no guests.