PEABODY, MASS. (WHDH) - Authorities say the one person who was inside a Peabody home as it caught fire on Wednesday was able to get out safely before flames started to rip through the structure.
The Peabody Fire Department said its crews responded to Wheatland Street late Wednesday morning after a passerby reported a fire burning at a large home there.
Peabody Fire Chief John Dowling told 7NEWS the fire appeared to have started on the exterior of the century-old, eight-bedroom house before spreading to the roof and burning further.
In addition to the man who was inside the home and later got out, Dowling added that two relatives were reportedly outside when the fire started.
Authorities believe the fire may have started on a side porch, though the cause remained under investigation by both Peabody FD and the State Fire Marshal’s Office Wednesday afternoon.
By the early afternoon, crews were still working to extinguish hot spots in the home, with wind blowing through the area making conditions difficult.
Crews from Peabody, Lynn, Lynnfield and Salem ultimately worked together to get the fire under control.
While no one was hurt, the fire was so intense Peabody’s fire chief at one point ordered his crews out of the building for their own safety.
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