enlarge Derek Davis/Staff Photographer

Firefighters mop up the remnants of a fire that destroyed an office building in Yarmouth Friday night.

enlarge Tom Bell/Staff Writer

Firefighters battle a fire that broke out shortly before 9 p.m. Friday in the second story of the building at 500 U.S. Route 1, across from Travis Roy Arena at North Yarmouth Academy.

Fire officials do not yet know what started a fire that destroyed a Yarmouth office building Friday night.

The 8:45 p.m. fire at 500 U.S. Route 1, which left two dozen businesses homeless, was still smoldering at noon today.

Sgt. Tim York of the state Fire Marshal's Office said tenants and building owner Art Dyer of Harpswell were being interviewed today to help try to determine how the fire started.

Damages at the three-story wooden structure are estimated at $2 million to $4 million. The building included doctors' and dentists' offices filled withexpensive equipment.

About 100 firefighters from across Cumberland County battled the blaze. No one was injured. But crews were hampered by the freezing temperatures, as well as problems with the water supply.

There was only one hydrant nearby, and firefighters had to use long hoses to pump more water in, said Yarmouth Deputy Fire Chief Mike Robitaille.

The fire triggered an alarm that alerted the Yarmouth Fire Department. A passing firefighter also spotted the fire, which may have started on a second floor.

Dyer, who owns other office properties, bought the building in 2006.

"I am speechless. It still hasn't sunk in," he said.

Tenants were scrambling to find alternative offices.Susan Soule of Falmouth, a therapist and tenant for five years, said she learned about the fire in Saturday's Portland Press Herald.

"I used to do a lot of crisis intervention work. Now I am doing it for myself," she said.

Josh Royte of Yarmouth was on hand to survey the damage to the medical office of his wife, Dr. Leigh Baker. He said she was too heartsick to view the building herself.

"She lost a lot of equipment, furniture, artwork," he said.

Royte said his wife had copies of all of her patient files in another location along with a week's worth of appointments. But she did lose her long-term appointment files, he said. Royte said his wife has already received offers of office space from medical colleagues.

Other businesses destroyed in the blaze included the Wild Bird Center of Yarmouth, Evolutions Personal Training & Wellness, Club Z! In-Home Tutoring, Mark E. Fischer orthodontics, Kumon Math & Reading Center, Top Cut hair and nail salon, Soft Trac, Coastal Neurobehavior Center, Edward Jones and Funeral Alternatives.

11:30 p.m. Friday

YARMOUTH — A spectacular six-alarm fire engulfed one of Yarmouth's largest commercial buildings along Route 1 on Friday night, drawing firefighters from across the region and leaving the town in the dark for a couple of hours after CMP cut power.

The fire broke out shortly before 9 p.m. in the second story of the building at 500 U.S. Route 1, directly across from Travis Roy Arena at North Yarmouth Academy, according to witnesses.

Smoke from the blaze was visible several miles in either direction.

The commercial complex houses multiple businesses and professional offices, including Wild Bird Center of Yarmouth, Fischer Family Orthodontics, Top Cut hair salon, an Edward Jones investment brokerage and others.

Firefighters said the complex was engulfed when they arrived a few minutes before 9, and the fire spread quickly. Central Maine Power cut service to the area soon after, at the request of the fire departments, leaving nearly 3,000 customers in the dark on a cold night with temperature in the 20s. CMP said power was restored just after 11 p.m.

Emergency crews from throughout Cumberland County responded to the blaze. Fire crews from Yarmouth, Falmouth, Portland, Cumberland, Windham and Freeport were on the scene.