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"HAMPTON BEACH, N.H. -- Firefighters battled a five-alarm fire that destroyed much of a block of Hampton Beach, overnight Friday.Crews were called to the Surf Hotel just before midnight. When they arrived, they found that heavy winds had blown the roof off the building and flames were spreading to surrounding buildings | u local Images\nFirefighters said the fire quickly went to five alarms and 125 firefighters, including some from Maine and Massachusetts, were called to help contain the blaze.The bad weather stretched the resources of the Hampton Fire Department, which had sent teams and equipment to several weather-related emergencies, such as fallen trees and transformer fires, before the hotel blaze was reported at 12:05 a.m. Friday and had to scramble to respond, fire Capt. David Lang said. Surrounding communities also were taxed and couldn't send help right away.Officials said the already difficult fire was made even more complicated by the age and construction of the building, as well as natural gas lines still active inside.\"We had uncontrolled natural gas fires burning inside the structure because we were unable to get to a point where we could isolate those gas lines,\" said Hampton Fire Chief Chris Silver.Silver said more than a million gallons of water were used to battle the fire.Within an hour, the fire had consumed at least five businesses in the area of 275 Ocean Blvd, including an arcade and several other seasonal businesses. By morning, seven businesses had been destroyed. The buildings were believed to have been unoccupied when the fire broke out.The fire chief said it could be a while, given the size of the area destroyed, to determine exactly what started the fire.\u0093We likely won\u0092t know until late next week,\u0094 said Silver.The fire marshal's office said their initial investigation revealed no suspicion of criminal intent, but investigators are continuing to review witness statements and documents related to the fire scene -- including possible consequences of weather conditions and the status of building utilities and systems. What they know for sure is that winds were the major factor in how far the flames spread, officials said.The hotel sits across the street from the beach on Ocean Boulevard in an area popular with tourists during the summer months.Paul Sullivan, a retired police officer who lives in the center of town about 3 miles from the hotel, said he could see the fire from his front window.\"I saw a growing glow, getting brighter and brighter by the moment,\" Sullivan said by telephone.It took firefighters several hours before they could put out the fire while battling the winds and the cold, but by then the buildings couldn't be salvaged, Lang said.\"They're pretty much gone,\" he said.The fire was so hot it melted siding on nearby buildings, and embers were being blown to nearby apartment buildings, officials said. Residents were evacuated as a precaution.One fire fighter was sent to the hospital with burns on his hand, fire officials said.White smoke was billowing from the charred rubble Friday morning as firefighters continued to douse it with water. One building looked as if it had collapsed, and wood and loose insulation poked through the smoldering debris.\u0093I looked out with my binoculars, I didn't believe it -- the whole block gone,\u0094 said Steve Labranche, of Hampton.The boulevard along the beach was almost as busy as it is in the summer. People filed past all afternoon, awestruck by just how much the fire destroyed.On-lookers snapped photos as crews worked to put out the remaining hot spots, and investigators combed through the debris.Business owners also came to the scene to survey their losses.Ray Blondeau has been a business owner in Hampton Beach since the 1950s.Friday he was forced to take a somber inventory of his life's work, now reduced to a pile of debris.\u0093It's still smoldering. My God, I didn't think it was -- but it is,\u0094 said Blondeau, as he examined the area.Blondeau lived in what used to be the third floor above his business -- the Happy Hampton Arcade.\u0093I\u0092ve lost it all. Everything's gone. All I got is what's on my back,\u0094 he said.While the loss is staggering, Blondeau said he has much to be thankful for. His granddaughter, who also called this place home, was away when the fire started.\u0093She'd have died in the fire, because that fire really went through this building,\u0094 he said.Blondeau is not sure if he will rebuild, or to what extent if he does.\u0093You\u0092ve got to pick up your marbles and think about what you're going to do. I really don't know what I'm going to do,\u0094 he said.For this summer, he plans to use the space as a parking lot.On-lookers who said they were also summer beach goers discovered some of their favorite seasonal spots gone. That includes the Surf Hotel where the fire was first spotted, a popular candy shop and the Happy Hampton Arcade.Now that the scene has been cleared of hot spots, the fire department is planning on bringing out fencing to secure the area and keep it safe, the fire chief said.The National Weather Service said the region recorded its strongest wind gust of the storm at about the same time the fire was reported - a 68 mph reading, just below hurricane force of 74 mph.Silver said four fires have broken out on the same block in the past 100 years.Surf Hotel Fire, Hampton Beach-70.80987442.9124721210483417"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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