A massive fire broke out at a Somerville home on Thursday morning spreading to six other homes on Calvin Street. Smoke could be seen for miles, billowing from a triple-decker at 25 Calvin Street.
“I just woke everyone up and said the rain is red,” said Margez Ora, who escaped the fire.
The fire started while most were still sleeping.
“The people say what happened? I said, ‘Out! I will tell you later’. They are students, all of them are students,” said Ora.
The fire appeared to have started in the back of the triple-decker home. Before long, the flames grew out of control and spread to neighboring homes.
“We got out of there pretty quickly. I looked outside and the other building was more on fire than ours and it just jumped across pretty quickly,” said one resident.
Two homes were destroyed and at least four others were also damaged. Dozens ran from their homes.
“All I could think of was just my documents, so I grabbed my documents,” said one man.
At least 50 people were displaced. Many aren’t sure what will be left when they return.
“When I got out and looked at the apartment, I realized we could lose everything,” said a resident.
At least one firefighter was injured, but there are no reports of any residents being hurt.
People are trying to remain optimistic.
“I just feel like everything else in there is replaceable,” said a resident.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation. It took crews roughly two hours to get the fire under control.