A 2010 fire that destroyed a home being built on Westport Island is at the center of a new lawsuit. William Foster and Roberta Scott, formerly of Darien, Conn., are blaming a masonry business in Union for the fire on Bay Shore Road.

Union Stone's owner Jamie Metcalfe didn't expect the suit. “This was out of the blue,” he said in a December 30 telephone interview. He denied the suit's claim that the fire stemmed from the business' negligence.

Metcalfe said he was a subcontractor on the project. He was building a chimney at the site, and had a thermostat-controlled kerosene heater there to keep the masonry work from freezing.

Both his business' insurance company and the homeowners' own insurance company investigated the March 11, 2010, fire, and neither accused his business of starting it, he said.

“No one pointed a finger at me,” he said. “I really thought I'd put this behind me,” he said.  “If this (suit) it successful, I'm definitely going to lose my business. I'll have to file for bankruptcy.”

Sgt. Ken Grimes of the State Fire Marshal's Office said the agency investigated the fire but could not determine a cause, because the damage was so extensive. The fire consumed almost the entire building, Grimes said December 31.

The plaintiffs' lawyer, David Van Dyke, said the suit is being filed nearly three years after the fire because it took time to explore the fire's cause. “It required a very thorough analysis,” he said December 31. “We have obtained an expert opinion that places responsibility for the fire with the defendant.” Reports will be filed in the case, he said; he declined to state the source of those reports.

Foster and Scott could not be reached for comment.

Their suit states they have uninsured and under-insured losses from the fire. It does not say how much money they are seeking. That has yet to be determined, Van Dyke said.

Union Stone's lawyer did not immediately return a message.

On December 17, a Superior Court justice granted a defense request for more time to respond to the suit.

Susan Johns can be reached at 207-844-4633 or sjohns@wiscassetnewspaper.com.