WINSLOW — Rick Vigue and his wife, Laurie, were home watching television Saturday night when Rick noticed a bright light outside the living room window.
“I saw the light coming from the trees outside, and when I got up to see what it was, I saw that the whole barn was engulfed,” Rick Vigue said.
The couple lost their barn and many belongings in it, including tools and a brand-new tractor that Rick had just bought this summer, in the fire Saturday night. Their house, which is just about 15 feet from the barn, was damaged but was largely intact Sunday morning.
“Luckily nobody got hurt, and we didn’t lose our house,” Rick Vigue said. “It was lucky we were still up because if it had been midnight, we may have been sleeping, and it could have been a lot worse.”
The fire was reported at around 8:30 p.m. at 116 North Reynolds Road. Captain Joe Gravel of the Winslow Fire Department said the cause is undetermined because of the extent of damage and will not be investigated by the Office of the Maine State Fire Marshal. The fire is not considered to be of suspicious origin.
Rick Vigue said as soon as he noticed the fire, he went outside and used a garden hose to try to put out the flames and keep the fire away from the house. He pulled the couple’s truck and an attached boat into a neighbor’s yard across the street, and Laurie called 911.
The barn was fully involved when firefighters arrived at the scene and was destroyed. There were no injuries reported. The Vigues have insurance and said they hope it will cover some of the items that were in the barn, like the tractor that Rick Vigue just bought.
They also lost tools from a saw mill that Rick Vigue’s father used to operate in Winslow and that he said were irreplaceable.
Their house was damaged with several back windows broken, the back side of the house burnt and roof tiles melted.
Yet despite their loss, the Vigues expressed gratitude for the things they did have on Sunday.
“The neighbors have been really good to us,” Rick Vigue said. “One neighbor offered to make us dinner, and others offered us places to stay. It’s nice to know there are still nice people.”
Firefighters from Albion, Fairfield, Vassalboro and Waterville also responded to the scene. The Clinton Fire Department covered Winslow’s station.
Firefighters were at the scene for about two and one-half hours, Gravel said.
Rachel Ohm — 612-2368
Twitter: @rachel_ohm
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