ROCKLAND — A Rockland woman has been charged with allegedly setting a fire that swept through her home to the second floor and caused heavy damage.

Elizabeth Cole, 54, has been charged by the Maine State Fire Marshalls office with two counts of arson in connection with the fire at her residence at 29 James Street in Rockland Aug. 30. One count of the arson charges stipulate damaging the property and the other count relates to recklessly endangering another person or property.

Judge Susan Sparaco signed an arrest warrant for Cole on Oct. 3 and set bail at $5,000 cash. Cole remains in the Knox County Jail as of Oct. 4.

As part of the bail conditions, Cole may not use or possess any incendiary devices and is subject to random searches and testing, according to the court documents.

The Maine State Fire Marshalls Office was contacted the night of the fire by Rockland Fire Chief, Chris Whytock, to lead the investigation about possible arson.

According to the affidavit filed in Knox County Unified Court, Cole was located by firefighters on the back porch of the residence. She made statements about wanting to die in the fire and had to be forcibly removed from the porch.

Cole told the investigator, John Wardell, during an interview at Pen Bay Medical Center in Rockport where she had been taken the night of the fire, that she poured gasoline in her living room and ignited the fire with a lighter. 

She said that she got married in the house and was going to die there as well.

Cole and her former husband are divorced and estranged and he moved out of the house over a year ago, according to the court documents.  

Cole told her neighbor after she was removed from the porch by firefighters that she was “so sorry.”

She described her residence at 29 James Street as “her forever home” and was not going to leave and would die in it.

The Rockland Fire Department was supported by 25 mutual aid firefighters and although the house was heavily engulfed, the most significant damage was in the living room of the house, according to Whytock. Firefighters were quickly able to extinguish the fire.

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AUGUST 30: Rockland EMS transported one person to Pen Bay Medical Center Tuesday around 9 p.m., just as firefighters started extinguishing the flames burning through the unidentified individual’s house at 29 James St.

The person, whose condition was unknown by Rockland Fire Chief Whytock, had gotten out of the structure unaccompanied by the time EMS and fire crews arrived. No other people were in the house at that time.

Whytock said that fire fighters knew from the initial dispatch that flames were seen coming out the front windows. This was based on a 911 call from an unidentified caller, who was not the homeowner.

According to Whytock, when the first crew arrive on scene, heavy flames were showing from the first and second floors. He added that the fire had extended to the second floors, and “self vented” through the windows.

The first crew to the scene extinguished the fire, which was confined to the front of the house, within three to four minutes.

Whytock said: “I don’t want to say that it was an easy one, because they worked hard. But any time a fire self vents, it could make it better for us, or worse, depending on how big the building is. And this one, it just found it’s way out the windows. That helped us out. It definitely prevented it from going further into the building.”

Even still, mutual aid arrived from Rockport, Camden, Thomaston, and South Thomaston, and North East Ambulance. Rockland Car 1, Tower 3, Squad 3, Rescue 1, Engine 2, Engine 1. Mutual Aid from Thomaston Fire, South Thomaston Fire, Rockport Fire, Camden Fire, North East Ambulance, and the Maine State Fire Marshall’s Office.

According to Whytock, 15 RFD plus an estimated 25 mutual aid firefighters arrived to help.

Every crew was involved in some aspect of this fire whether it was providing equipment or looking for sparks, according to Whytock. Camden is routinely called to Rockland fires for rapid intervention. In case any Rockland members get hurt, Camden will go in and get them out.

“That’s a constant standby unless they’re needed,” he said.

Whytock also said, “Because Rockland has a full-time staffed department, a quick knock down of the initial fire helped make this fire a successful one. Mutual aid from our surrounding towns is something Rockland Fire and EMS couldn't do without. Thanks to you all for the assistance.”

The Fire Marshal’s Office is investigating the cause of the fire.

Sarah Thompson and Sarah Shepherd can be reached at news@penbaypilot.com