BATH — A fire that broke out Thursday, Dec. 10, at City Councilor James Omo’s 177 Middle St. house gutted the building and killed two pets.

Omo, who represents Ward 1 on the council, said Friday morning that the cause of the fire remains unknown and said he believed his home was “a complete loss.” He said an insurance appraiser would be coming later in the day to look at the two-story building, and that the state fire marshal’s office would be investigating the cause of the blaze with the aid of an electrical specialist.

Omo said he lost everything in the fire, including all his business records and a dog and cat. He broken windows to try to get to the pets, cutting his hands in the process and sustaining burns over and under his eye. Part of his beard was singed off.

“There’s just so much damage, because it was so hot in there,” he said.

Fire Chief Steve Hinds said the fire call came in around 2:45 p.m. Thursday. Firefighters from Bath, West Bath and Brunswick Naval Air Station were able to keep the fire contained to Omo’s home.

“There was a lot of fire there,” Hinds said. “It was really going when we got there.”

The chief said he knew immediately that the home belonged to Omo, who he has known for years.

Omo said he was shoveling snow off a deck outside the house when he he smelled an electrical odor, thought the origin might be his hot tub and went to turn it off. saw the fire in an office, at the northeast corner of the first floor. The breaker is on the outside of the building, about four feet from an office window at the northeast corner of the first floor.

When he got there, Omo could see the fire.

“I went in to try and get pets and see what was going on,” he said. “That’s where the fire was, and I couldn’t make it to the office.”

A contractor for 15 years, Omo said he had nearly finished remodeling the building he started working on when he moved in five years ago.

His girlfriend, Sarah, and her 5- and 13-year-old children live with Omo, but were not home at the time. Omo is staying with his brother, Andy Omo, owner of the Fairhaven Inn in the north end of Bath.

He said he plans to tear down the remaining structure and rebuild on the property, since trying to restore it after such damage would be difficult.

“Where it’s at now, I’m not going to put the effort into trying to rebuild it, because I know what it takes to do that,” Omo said. “The point where it’s at right now, it would be the same money for me to tear it down and start over. So I would say it’s a complete loss.”

Bath City Manager Bill Giroux said on Friday morning that “we’re devastated here at City Hall. And we’ll do everything we can to help Jamie and his girlfriend and their children.”

Giroux said the call has gone out to city employees and councilors to make cash donations through a short-term fundraiser, to help the family through the holiday season.

“I’m sure that there will be other efforts in the community for longer-term help,” he said. “This is a tight-knit community. People always step up and help each other.”

People who want to contribute to the fund can reach Erika Benson, Giroux’s assistant, at 443-8330, or City Clerk Mary White at 443-8332.

Alex Lear can be reached at 373-9060 ext. 113 or alear@theforecaster.net.

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Fire gutted the house owned by Bath City Councilor James Omo at 177 Middle St. on Thursday afternoon, Dec. 10. Two pets were killed in the blaze.