SOUTHAMPTON — At first, Robert Floyd thought his dryer had caused a fire inside his 1772 home on East Street last Friday when he opened a door to find billowing black smoke.
Floyd, who is the town moderator and a local photographer, said it looked like a scene from a Harry Potter movie.
Floyd called 911, collected his two dogs and left the home. His partner, Linda Emerson, ran barefoot out of the house at 15 East St. onto the icy street.
A minute later, at 12:28 p.m., the Southampton Fire Department arrived to battle the fire and remain on scene for six-plus hours.
“It was difficult to get at the seed of the fire,” Fire Chief John Workman said.
Workman determined the cause was loose mortar between the bricks of an old chimney.
A wood stove in the home was lit and a fire broke out in the breezeway connecting the house to a barn, storage room in the barn and attic, Workman said.
Easthampton, Holyoke, Westhampton and Westfield fire departments arrived on scene and helped prevent the fire from spreading to the main part of the house.
On Friday, Workman estimated the cost of damages at about $150,000.
“I thought we’d have to tear the house down,” Floyd said.
The walls connecting the house with the barn are gone and a ceiling collapsed as firefighters were leaving, Floyd said.
He said he hired a restoration company to evaluate the damages and has no idea what the cost may be or how long it will take until his home is habitable. He said the house can be repaired.
“Everything reeks of toxic smoke,” he said, noting that he will need to restore antiques and dry clean clothes because of water and smoke damage.
For now, Floyd and Emerson are staying at a hotel in Holyoke while the dogs are at a boarding facility.
All his artwork is stored at the Robert Floyd Gallery down the street from his house. He had to cancel his planned “Basketball” exhibit, but has a new exhibit, “Treasures from the Vault,” running through Jan. 31.
Caitlin Ashworth can be reached at cashworth@gazettenet.com.