A fire broke out at a home on Route 4 in Epsom on Thursday morning, leading authorities to close the town’s main thoroughfare during rush hour and delaying the opening of town hall.
The blaze left its toll on the house, according to Epsom’s Deputy Fire Chief Warren “Ted” Virgin.
“There’s a lot of water and fire damage. We haven’t assessed exactly how much yet,” he said.
The two-bedroom, two-bathroom house, located at 1621 Dover Road, belongs to Nicholas and Chelsea Locke and was built in 1830, according to property records. The structure sits at two and a half stories tall. The property owners also run Chicken Nick’s farmstand at the site.
Virgin said the call came in around 7:30 a.m., alerting emergency responders to smoke emanating from the property. It wasn’t immediately clear which building.
The department arrived on scene in less than a minute, “saw heavy fire, got an attack line, then requested backup with a second alarm,” according to Virgin.
“And then everything else at this point is just under investigation. We’re not sure of the origin or anything yet,” he said.
No one was home at the time, and the fire inflicted no bodily injuries, Virgin added.
“I’d say it was probably at least an hour to get it,” he said. “There were a couple hot spots to chase.”
After the initial fire was knocked down, there was a secondary roof blaze, he explained.
“It’s a cathedral ceiling there, so it was some hard access. That’s why you see multiple holes in the roof. We had to get it from the outside, not the inside.”
Multiple towns responded with mutual aid, including Pittsfield, Pembroke, Allenstown, Chichester and Concord, according to a Merrimack County emergency alert. The origins of the flames remain unclear at this time, and the State Fire Marshal’s office will be investigating the cause.
Route 4 reopened around 10 a.m., with Town Hall following suit.
As first responders cleared out from the scene, debris lay scattered in the yard by the house, where bright-colored mums and a painted farm sign usually greet people from the street.
Finley Williams contributed reporting.
