CARTHAGE — A local man was in fair condition Wednesday at a Portland hospital after suffering serious burns in a fire Tuesday morning at his house on Route 142.

Willis Berry, 64, is expected to undergo “many surgeries and medical treatments in his future,” according to a GoFundMe page set up to raise money to help Berry and his son, Jesse Berry, 28.

Willis Berry, who remains at Maine Medical Center, woke early Tuesday to find his house ablaze. He immediately yelled to his son, who was sleeping upstairs in the two-story house.

Jesse Berry and his dog escaped through a second-floor window.

The older Berry, who escaped through a first-floor door, suffered burns to about 50 percent of his body, according to Carthage Fire Chief Dan Skidgell.

A dog and a cat perished in the fire, which was reported at 4:50 a.m.

The fire started in the chimney, according to Jeremy Damren, a state fire investigator.

The family lost everything in the blaze.

“Anything and everything helps as we are trying to help prepare them for the harsh and long Maine winter,” according to the message on the GoFundMe page — www.gofundme.com/r2d8n-house-fire-total-loss.

By Wednesday afternoon, $470 had been raised by nine people.

dperry@sunmediagroup.net

Willis Berry, 64, of Carthage is recovering from serious burns at Maine Medical Center in Portland after fire swept through his house Tuesday morning on Route 142. He was listed in fair condition Wednesday. (Donna M. Perry/Sun Journal)