Fire destroys ambulance in Presque Isle

PRESQUE ISLE – Crown Ambulance’s Presque Isle base is temporarily out of commission after an ambulance that was supposed to be used in the city’s Memorial Day parade had an electrical short and caught fire, gutting the ambulance and the garage bay where it was parked.

The ambulance was not running well before the parade, so Crown employees left it in the garage and took one of the seven other units to the event, Presque Isle Fire Chief Jim Krysiak said Monday.

Sometime before 1:30 p.m., an electrical short sparked a fire in the ambulance, which spread from Crown’s garage bay to the building’s attic area and living quarters.

The Presque Isle Fire Department arrived in time to see flames curling up five to seven feet over the building’s eaves. The ambulance and the building were in flames, Presque Isle Deputy Fire Chief Peter Coffin said Monday.

When firefighters headed into the building to attack the blaze, one of the oxygen tanks inside the ambulance exploded, knocking two men to the ground. The blast created a loud explosion, but the firefighters were not harmed, pump operator Mike Bradley said Monday.

The flames, which firefighters had under control in less than 20 minutes, caused severe heat and smoke damage, but Krysiak believed the building was salvageable, though he said the garage bays likely would need to be torn down.

Aroostook Medical Center officials were unable to put a value on the damage done by the fire, though David Peterson, hospital president and CEO, said the ambulance was valued at approximately $100,000.

The Aroostook Medical Center in Presque Isle oversees Crown Ambulance as one of its departments.

Ambulance services will not be affected by the fire, Peterson said, as Crown has several other bases in Aroostook County.

Because at least one crew of two people is on duty at all times, the hospital has established a temporary headquarters for emergency medical technicians in Presque Isle at the Academy House on Academy Street.

“Crown isn’t going to miss a beat,” Peterson said.