By susan berg and ROWENA PLETT

Staff writers

A house in Marion was destroyed by fire Thursday but no one was injured.

The fire alarm for Bill and Lisa Anderson’s two-story, nearly 100-year-old house, at 503 S. Cedar St., sounded at 12:38 p.m.

“When we got there, the house was engulfed with smoke,” Marion Fire Chief Mike Regnier said.

Smoke billowed from roof vents and windows as firefighters desperately searched for the source. It soon became evident that more manpower was needed. The call went out to Hillsboro Fire Department around 1 p.m. bringing firefighters and a pumper truck with water.

When firefighters first arrived, concern was expressed because there was a car in the driveway, indicating someone may have been at home at the time of the fire. Family members determined the owner of the car was not at home. A family dog was in the backyard and was moved away from danger.

About 90 minutes later, Florence firefighters were dispatched, also bringing a tanker with water.

A swift breeze actually worked in the firefighters’ favor.

“The wind was blowing in the right direction,” Regnier said.

Eventually, there were 30 firefighters battling the blaze.

Hoses were attached to three hydrants throughout the neighborhood. There was a bunker of reserve water at the corner of Cedar and Maple streets.

“When pumping water this hard, we used water from different hydrants because we didn’t want a main water line to a hydrant to collapse,” Regnier said. “We would have really been in trouble if that would have happened.”

Also on standby, was a Marion County water tanker, which was not needed.

By 4:30 p.m., firefighters from Hillsboro and Florence were released from scene. Marion firefighters stayed until 8 p.m.

Firefighters were called back to the scene at 11:30 a.m. Friday when debris reignited. The crew was successful in extinguishing that flare-up.

A fire marshal was on the scene Thursday and Friday, investigating the blaze. With the roof gone and much of the second floor destroyed, it was difficult for the marshal to determine the cause of the fire, Regnier said.

There was no structural damage to neighboring structures, Regnier said.

Lincolnville

A call came in to the Lincolnville Fire Department at 7:56 p.m. Sunday that a house was on fire at Third and Lombard streets.

According to fire chief Lester Kaiser, the house was fully engulfed when firefighters arrived and flames were shooting through the roof.

Firefighters went into defensive mode and called for mutual aid from Lost Springs, Ramona, Tampa, and Marion to provide water and manpower to fight the large fire.

Water was obtained from an underground storage tank at Centre High School.

The Tampa ambulance and American Red Cross also responded.

The occupants of the house — siblings Sabrina Carson and Brandon Albrecht and Sabrina’s 2-year-old daughter Emma — were not at home at the time of the fire. It was spotted by a passer-by. She went to the neighboring house to warn residents and call 911.

The fast-moving fire destroyed the entire building, collapsing the roof and leaving only wall studs standing.

The home of Greg and Sharon Hubbard, less than 20 yards away, was not damaged.

“The fire crews did a good job,” Kaiser said. “The operation went smoothly.”

He said the fire has been ruled as accidental and appears to have started in the attic area.

The residents are missing a dog. They fear it was killed in the fire, but it has not yet been found.

The house is owned by Greg and Pam Holub of rural Lincolnville.