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Three University of Maine students were left temporarily homeless after a fire damaged their apartment building on Union Street in Bangor on Jan. 11.
All three of the women were in the apartment on the morning of the fire, which happened at about 9 a.m., according to resident Anne Good.
“We heard the fire trucks pull up and we were joking around saying, ‘It sounds like our house is on fire,’” Good said. “And then someone tried to break down our door, letting us know the house was on fire.”
The fire began in the rear of the building, away from the apartment the three women share in the front of the building, and is thought to have been caused by a faulty light switch.
“We were just hoping it wouldn’t get to our apartment,” Erin Gould said. “The first thing I thought of was to get my cat out.”
Her quick thinking came not only from keeping a level head – it came from experience.
For Rani and Erin Gould, the blaze marks the second time fire has affected their lives. Erin and Rani once lost their family home in China, Maine, to a devastating fire.
“I just thought why, why is this happening again?,” Erin Gould said. “You think you’d be more prepared the second time around but I wasn’t. You think you’d be more calm and know exactly what to do.”
While neither the fire nor water damaged their apartment, the three women were told by authorities that the building would have to be evacuated because basic utilities had been shut off.
“There was no electricity, water or heat after the fire,” Good said.
Another apartment in the building that housed a family, now staying at a Bangor hotel courtesy of the Red Cross, was severely damaged.
When Good realized she would need to look for a place to live, she called her supervisor at Peer Education on campus and told her she would not be into work that Monday. Within an hour, Good received a call from Associate Dean of Students Angel Laredo, informing the three that Knox Hall’s guest suite was available should they need it. The university also extended a meal plan to the women.
“The university isn’t charging us occupancy for the suite. Since it was an emergency, we were put up for free,” Good said. “In emergency situations, the university really takes care of its students.”
The three moved into the suite the Sunday after the fire and found Knox an open and caring community. The staff of Knox also enjoyed having them.
“They seem like great girls. I think it’s great the university is allowing them a temporary place to live, especially with such a tragic accident,” said Mark Moir, a resident assistant in Knox.
“It’s been great, not worrying about commuting,” said Rani Gould, a first-year graduate student.
“It’s been really, really nice having somewhere to go,” Good said. “We just want to thank Dean Laredo and all the other staff.”
Late last week, the three received word that they would be able to move back into their apartment within a few days.
Assistant news editor Rick Redmond contributed to this report.
Bangor Daily News