EVERETT, MASS. (WHDH) - Fire officials are trying to find out what caused a fire that killed two women and destroyed a triple-decker in Everett Sunday.
Families on the first and third floor of the Madison Avenue home escaped the fire, but the two women on the second floor, where firefighters say the blaze started, did not.
Crews who began battling the large fire around 11:45 p.m. found the two deceased victims on the second-floor of the home during the early morning hours, according to Everett Fire Chief Anthony Carli.
The family of Audrey LeBlanc says she and her partner, Dorene Durette, died in the fire.
“It’s a very sad day to lose people in a house fire like this,” he said. “Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of the victims.”
“It’s devastating,” said next-door neighbor Liliah Douche. “I saw them a couple of days ago driving by and my mom saw them yesterday coming back from work. It’s just devastating that we’ll never see them again.”
Douche said the couple had medical problems.
“They had a lot of lung problems and back problems so I think that’s why they couldn’t get out,” she said.
Their downstairs neighbor was still in shock.
“They were good people and nice people, we’ve known them for a long time,” said Nina Ramirez “They always got us stuff for holidays and birthdays. It’s sad, really sad.”
The upstairs neighbor said he and his family couldn’t get out the front door because the fire was marching toward them, and had to run out the back door. Ramirez said her family was lucky to make it out ahead of the fast-moving blaze.
“I came out the of my bedroom, looked through the bedroom window in the living room and there was just a big orange cloud of fire. I just kinda lost it,” Ramirez said.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation, but officials believe it started on the second floor.
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