ALBANY -- John Gomes pleaded guilty to arson Wednesday, admitting he started the November blaze that consumed several downtown buildings and damaged others, Albany County prosecutors said.

Gomes, 51, told police he was trying to forge a sword in an outdoor fire barrel on Nov. 30. Embers blew onto a nearby building that started burning.

Gomes pleaded guilty less than a month after he was indicted on fourth-degree arson, the charge he admitted to on Wednesday.

The fire began after Gomes lit a burn barrel as he tried to fashioned a blade, something he'd seen on the History Channel program "Forged in Steel." That led to the igniting of the building where Gomes lived on Remsen Street.

His attorney, Assistant Public Defender Chris Ritchey, said Gomes feels terrible about what happened.

"He's incredibly remorseful," he said, adding Gomes often became emotional when they met to discuss the case. "It almost goes without saying how badly he feels about the whole thing."

Gomes has been the target of harsh criticism and threats on social media, he said.

"He lost everything in the fire as well," Ritchey said. "He's lost all of his possessions and he's been excoriated."

From that initial fire, wind blew embers across the city's downtown, eventually starting fires in more than a dozen buildings.

Gomes pleaded guilty to fourth-degree arson. He faces a year in jail when he is sentenced by Albany County Judge William Carter on April 25.

The blaze sent a column of smoke billowing in to the air so large it appeared on the National Weather Service's radar. It caused at least $4 million in damage, displaced more than 20 people and caused fire, smoke or water damage to nearly three dozen buildings.

As part of his guilty plea, Gomes agreed to pay restitution, though the district attorney said the amount he'll have to pay has not be tabulated.

Some of Cohoes' most prominent businesses were affected. Smith's tavern and restaurant and Rizzo's flower shop were badly damaged. The former home of Claremont's Tavern, where a new restaurant was planned, collapsed.