Four classic cars were destroyed Friday morning in a two-alarm fire in Taneytown.
The vehicles, as well as some carpeting, were stored in a wooden garage in the first block of Mill Avenue owned by Lloyd Hovermale, fire officials said.
A 1952 Ford pickup, a 1966 Ford Mustang, a Chevrolet Chevelle, a Pontiac Firebird and another vehicle were in the building when the fire began about 6 a.m., fire officials said.
A second alarm was sounded at 6:13 a.m. because of the blaze's intensity and the nearness of a 2 1/2 -story house. Vinyl siding on the house buckled and melted from the heat.
An R. D. Bowman grain mill behind the garage was sprayed by firefighters and did not catch fire.
Mr. Hovermale said the garage, a 60-foot-by-25-foot structure, was built in the late 1950s and that he rents the building for storage. He could not provide the names of the car owners. Damage to the building was estimated at $15,000. The cars' value was not known.
Fifty firefighters brought the blaze under control in 90 minutes, but remained at the site for two hours and 40 minutes. Firefighters from Taneytown, Harney and Union Bridge were joined by crews from Kingsdale and Littlestown in Adams County, Pa.
The blaze is being investigated by a state fire marshal.