Update (6/26/2023, 3:45 p.m.) The adult male found deceased as firefighters battled a house fire in Lincolnville has been identified as Fritz Trisdale, 75. 

Trisdale lived alone at the residence, according to Shannon Moss, Public Information Officer for the Maine Department of Public Safety.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

Adult found deceased during house fire near Belfast Road in Lincolnville

Update (6/24/2023, 7 p.m.) As firefighters battled a house fire in Lincolnville, they located a deceased adult male in the house. The Fire Marshal’s Office was contacted, and spent the afternoon investigating the scene.

The deceased was transported to a local funeral home, where an exam will be completed by the Chief Medical Examiner.

LINCOLNVILLE – An hour after a house fire brought area firefighters to Route 52 (Belfast Road), and about half an hour after the majority of flames had been suppressed, a cat appeared from the bushes and tried to rush past firefighters in an attempt to gain access to the house. Rockport Deputy Fire Chief Todd Philbrook scooped up the cat and carried it, wide eyed and squirrely, into the arms of a Lincolnville/Northport EMT, who carried the cat up the long drive and into the arms of someone who knew that the cat belonged to the homeowner.

A relay of teamwork beginning with Waldo County dispatch reporting smoke alarms sounding and flames visible just prior to 9:45 a.m., and Knox County dispatch coordinating fire departments, were not enough to save the two-story log cabin at 11 Miller Town Drive, in Lincolnville, Saturday, June 24, 2023.

As first on scene, Lincolnville Fire Chief Don Fullington III encountered a fully involved structure fire with flames encompassing the front walls of the building.

As soon as his first fire truck arrived – Engine 4 – he and the firefighter driving the truck set into action, laying a line and starting the attack from the outside. At the time, fire was coming out all of the windows, he said.

More help arrived – some going straight to the fire pond – from Hope, Camden, and Belmont. Some Rockport firefighters were temporarily delayed due to a smoke detector call in their town, and Belfast was delayed because they, too, were on another call.

Once firefighters arrived with proper Self Contained Breathing Apparatus, the attack moved forward, up to the walls and windows of the structure. Yet, initially they could go no further. The tin roof made roofline ventilation impossible, and the thick smoke within the interior made visualization difficult for the first half hour of the fight.

“There was not enough visibility in the house to see how compromised the structure was,” said Fullington.

In the end, the house was gutted by the flames, and after the Fire Marshal’s Office investigates, Farley’s Excavation will raze the structure so that firefighters could reach the final sparks and smolders.

“A big thank you to all mutual aid,” said Fullington. “It was a very warm, humid day, and everybody worked very hard.”

The Lincolnville Fire Department was assisted by the Knox and Waldo regional communications centers, the Waldo County Sheriff’s Office, and the following fire departments.

Hope Fire Department

Camden Fire Department

Northport Fire Department

Searsmont Fire Department

Belfast Fire Department

Rockport Fire Department

Reach Sarah Thompson at news@penbaypilot.com