RUMFORD — The investigation into the cause of Friday’s fire at the Linnell Motel is continuing, fire Chief Bob Chase said Tuesday. He’s asking anyone who has photos of the motel before or after firetrucks arrived to contact him.

Rumford fire Chief Bob Chase said Dan Young, an investigator with the Office of the State Fire Marshal, was conducting interviews in Rumford on Monday night and those interviews are ongoing. Young began interviews of witnesses at the scene Friday.

“At this point, the cause of the fire is undetermined,” he said.

At the time of the fire, 15 people were living at the 54-room motel. None were injured.

Chase is asking that anyone with photographs of the motel, both before and after the arrival of firetrucks Friday, contact him at 207-364-2901. “We’re most concerned about photos before we arrived, but we’re interested in any photographs.”

The fire, which started near the second-floor roof in the back of the main building, was reported just before 2 p.m. Friday.

According to an employee at a nearby store, the motel was fully engulfed by 2:15 p.m. Firefighters and emergency rescue workers from 10 departments battled the blaze.

Firefighters were still hard at work at 6 p.m. fighting a stubborn fire in the basement, bringing the fire under control about an hour later.

“The initial report was that there was heavy fire from the roof and the building is in the shape of a T, and the fire was near the end of the T — that back section — on the second floor,” Chase said.

Chase estimated the damage at well over $100,000.

Most of those who were living at the motel are contractors at the Catalyst paper mill in Rumford.

Linnell Hotel manager Tom Kumar, his wife, Preeti, their newborn infant and two girls, ages 2 and 4, lost all of their belongings and home.

To help two families displaced by the fire, the Rev. Dan Pearson of Rumford Baptist Church said people can call him at 207-507-1066 or send clothing and food to: c/o Dan Pearson, Rumford Baptist Church, 431 Raymond St., Rumford, ME 04276.

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