A unique century-old family home, north of Shelburne, was destroyed by fire early Sunday morning.
Around 12:30 am Shelburne fire crews were called to a house fire in the community of Horning’s Mills. Crews say they arrived to find the house almost fully engulfed in flames.
One person was at home, but she escaped uninjured.
“We heard an explosion, almost like a gunshot,” said Lisa Way, whose father lives in the area. “It was scary. It went up so fast it was like a matchbox being lit off. The flames were high and smoke everywhere.”
Crews were called in from surrounding departments, and it took about thirty firefighters to fight the blaze.
Shelburne Fire Chief Brad Lemaich says the old architecture was a challenge.
“Rather unusual for us. We don't often fight fires in homes with this type of background. Well over a hundred years old. I'm told by locals it was initially built as a bakery, and suspended over a stream,” he said on Sunday.
“Not having the fire breaking through the roof, we were limited to how we could attack the fire. We also had the stream which flows under the house limiting our access.”
The chief says there were working smoke alarms in the house. The cause of the fire is still unclear.
