ROCKLAND — At 3:22 p.m., Sunday, Jan 1, area dispatch received the first of several calls of a structure fire at 384 Old County Road. Rockland Fire Chief Chris Whytock was on the scene first, since he happened to live across the street from home owner Douglas Conway.

Firefighter Carl Anderson was transported to Penobscot Bay Medical Center and then flown to Maine Medical Center in Portland after experiencing respiratory issues. According to Monday’s duty chief, Asst. Fire Chief Adam Miceli, Anderson was one of the initial six Rockland responders. He entered the building and experienced breathing problems, which caused him to make a quick exit. Due to the potential of toxins entering his lungs, he was flown to Maine Medical Center in Portland.

Chief Whytock issued a statement late Monday afternoon regarding Anderson’s situation.

“Anderson, a six-year veteran of the Rockland Fire Department, was hospitalized overnight as a precautionary measure following the onset of shortness of breath while operating as the nozzle firefighter on the second floor of the fire. Firefighter Anderson was able to exit the building without assistance but was transported to PBMC for evaluation.

“Due to the possibility that he’d inhaled countless unknown toxic gases within the smoke, he was shipped to Maine Medical Center for overnight observation. We expect firefighter Anderson will be released from Maine Med tomorrow morning with a clean bill of health. The circumstances of this incident are being investigated to ensure that all of Anderson’s equipment worked properly.”

In his official fire report, Whytock reported smoke coming from the second floor. He requested mutual aid “due to the limited water supply and the possible need for more manpower.”

That mutual aid came in the form of Rockport Fire, Camden Fire, Thomaston Fire, South Thomaston Fire, Owls Head Fire, and North East Ambulance.

In all, 15 Rockland firefighters and EMS personnel responded along with an estimated 20 mutual aid members.

The rest of the report is as follows:

“The duty crew arrived and placed a hand line into operation and began attacking the fire, which was located on the second floor of the structure. Heavy smoke and fire was found at the top of the stairway and while the first hand line had knocked down the bulk of the fire, it was still smoldering within the walls and attack spaces.

“Addition crews went to work to open up the walls and locate any hidden fire that wasn’t accessible to the initial attack. Additionally, the building needed to be vented to release the heated smoke and toxic gasses given of during the fire which was done by removing two windows on the second floor. The second floor had moderate fire and smoke damage while the first floor had smoke and some water damage.”

First Unit/Arrival Time: Rockland Car 1 arrived at 3:25 pm

Apparatus Assigned: Rockland Tower3, Rockland Squad 3, Rockland Rescue 1, Rockland Engine 1, Rockland Engine 2

“Assistance from our mutual aid companies insures that there is adequate manpower to not only extinguish the fire successfully, but to make sure all of the firefighters operating have sufficient backup for additional duties and safety of all on scene.

“A big thanks to our neighboring departments!”

 At about 3:20 p.m., Sunday, Jan 1, Rockland firefighters were called to 384 Old County Road, next to Shorty’s Towing, following a report of flames coming from the house. Mutual aid was then dispatched from Rockport, Thomaston, South Thomaston, Owls Head, Camden and St. George.

As one responder broke windows at the front, second floor level of the house, other responders used chainsaws to clear away the bushes adjacent to the ground level.

Old County Road was closed to traffic for at least two and a half hours while crews on scene used water hoses, pick axes, and ventilation tactics to douse the flames and search for hot spots.

The state fire marshal has been called in to investigate. This story will be updated when more details become available.

Sarah Thompson can be reached at news@penbaypilot.com