MATTAPOISETT, MASS. (WHDH) - A number of buildings, boats and vehicles were destroyed by flames at the Mattapoisett Boat and Yacht Club Friday afternoon.
SKY7-HD aerial footage showed fire crews on the scene off of Ned’s Point Road as a parking lot’s worth of boats and other vehicles were consumed by the massive fire. Officials have said many of the buildings on the premise have burned to the ground, as well.
7NEWS also received reports of explosions in the area during the fire from witnesses, though these have not been confirmed by officials.
“It just took off,” said witness Sean Coutino, describing the fire. “You could hear explosions. You could see it creep from one building to the next.”
The Mattapoisett Fire Department said the fire started at 1:20 p.m., and by the time they got to the scene, one building was already fully engulfed in flames.
“This was a very challenging fire for our department,” said Mattapoisett Fire Department Chief Andrew Murray. “We could not have done it without our mutual aid partners. Over a dozen fire chiefs assisting, as well as the state fire marshal,”
Officials said by the time the fire was out around 6 p.m., five more buildings had burned, along with dozens of boats and cars.
It took 19 fire engines, two ladder trucks, three fire boats, 12 tankers and 100 firefighters to put out the flames.
“The chief quickly called for our hazmat team to do air monitoring for the neighborhood as well as for the safety of the firefighters,” said State Fire Marshal Peter Ostroskey.
Four people were injured in the blaze. Three firefighters were treated for minor injuries, while one other person was transported to the hospital. No details on their injuries were given.
Some residents sheltered in place to avoid toxic smoke, and dozens of others evacuated.
“It was complete mayhem coming out of there, people trying to see if their loved ones were down there,” said Coutino.
Power and gas were both turned off to the neighborhood as crews worked to stop the flames from spreading to other properties.
Meanwhile, boat owners were left wondering if their boats survived the blaze.
“We came in here to get repairs, and now it’s history,” said boat owner Rob Kirkwood.
Locals told 7NEWS the community is also feeling for the family that owns the Boat Yard and Yacht Club, now dealing with destruction.
“The owners are beloved in this town, the boat yard is beloved, everyone has a boat yard story,” said one resident. “People are very connected to the water here and very connected to the boat yard, so everyone’s heart is breaking a little bit.”
Streets surrounding the boat yard were blocked off throughout Friday for emergency crews as they trucked water into the area.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
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