I was going to write a little bit about my vacation in Kansas and Nebraska this past week but about 12 hours after my return to work, the biggest fire Boothbay Harbor has seen in many years broke out.

Fellow Register employee Sarah Morley called me just about the time of tip-off of game 4 of the Celtics-Heat playoff games to tell me about the fire at Beach Cove Waterfront Inn. “You can see the smoke and fire for miles,” she said.

So, about 10 minutes later, I slipped on my shoes and headed out to see what I could “possibly” get for photos. A few years ago, I got down Lakeview Road to cover a fire at Kate and Matt Rice’s house, just past the inn. However, on Monday night, there was no getting near the road as police and deputies diverted traffic down Middle Road and shut off other nearby roads. That’s what I anticipated.

I thought maybe I could get a decent shot off Lakeside Drive, but the shooting distance – in the dark – wasn’t the best.

Tuesday morning, I started receiving photos from readers and Julie Roberts provided a close-up photo which we put on the website and featured on the front page.

From the looks of the other photos, we should all be thankful that we have knowledgeable, brave and dependable firefighters in our region. The fire looked like it could have taken out many other houses on the street – and thankfully – the wind was very light.

And thankfully, no one was hurt or killed.

Thank you, firefighters for a job well done in containing the fire. Readers ... remember to support your local firefighters whenever they need help.