DORCHESTER, MASS. (WHDH) - More than thirty-five people were displaced Monday after a fire broke out in Dorchester, drawing a large emergency response and ultimately impacting five buildings.
The Boston Fire Department said crews were first called to 37 Holiday St. where flames burned through the back of a house and extended to a building next door on Monday afternoon.
On the department’s Twitter account, officials said several rear porches in the back of the home at 37 Holiday Street collapsed as a result of the fire.
Authorities also shared photos from the scene, including an image of crews spraying down the back of the house, which appeared to be burnt out with remnants of the porches and back wall visible.
At least 15 ladder trucks were spotted on scene at one point during the emergency response.
In an update just before 4:15 p.m., the Boston Fire Department said the fire was knocked down.
Later speaking with reporters, fire officials said two buildings were considered total losses as a result of this fire. Other buildings sustained heat damage, with charred or melted siding in some spots.
Five houses down from the site of the fire, area resident Mac Brown said he saw smoke and quickly ran to help.
“All you saw was black smoke,” he said. “Thick black smoke”
“We all bum-rushed the door to get it open,” Brown said. “…We banged and yelled and banged and yelled. It was about eight or nine people trying to get in and get people out.”
One firefighter was taken to a hospital for precautionary reasons, officials said.
While everyone inside the impacted buildings at the time of the fire was able to get to safety, officials said four pets were missing as of around 6 p.m.
Among the people who were displaced, one woman said she ran out of her house with her brand new puppy once she realized conditions were deteriorating.
“It just felt so surreal,” the woman said. “The fire was just so intense. It was just crazy.”
One man told 7NEWS he lived with his wife and two children on the third floor of one of the now-charred buildings.
“I just saw a bunch of smoke,” the man said. “As soon as I saw it, I knew it was on my street. And I came to look and that’s when I realized it was my house.”
As part of their response, firefighters were seen breaking windows and using drones to survey the damage from above.
“Thank God there wasn’t a lot of wind today,” said Boston Deputy Fire Chief Rodney Marshall.
Boston Mayor Michelle Wu said the speed of the emergency response Monday “really prevented a lot of additional damage.”
Fire officials said the Red Cross and the Boston Cabinet of Community Engagement were helping displaced people find housing as of Monday evening.
The cause of this fire remained under investigation.
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