FITCHBURG, MASS. (WHDH) - Firefighters sprang into action Monday morning to rescue a woman and several animals from a two-alarm blaze that tore through a single-family home in Fitchburg.
Six people were displaced by the fire, which raced through a two-and-a-half story home on Holt Street. Cell phone footage showed the 66-year-old woman trapped on an upper floor, frantically waving out the window.
Contractors working on an adjacent home say they rushed over with a ladder when they noticed the smoke and kept a woman who was still inside calm until fire crews arrived on the scene.
“We called 911 and told them to put the 40-foot ladder up there and get the lady out,” said John Despres.
Oslyn Lazo tried to rescue the woman, climbing as far as he could and then speaking in Spanish to calm her down.
“I was nervous, I was shaking, the house was on fire,” Lazo said. “I went up and I opened the window because the lady was freaking out. She wanted to jump from the third floor.”
That’s when the firefighters showed up. Deputy Chief Anthony Marrama said two firefighters went inside to get the woman out.
Also rescued from the fire were several animals, including chickens, a parrot, and a small dog. There were no reported injuries.
Evelyn Marrero, the elderly woman’s mother-in-law, said she has done a lot of work on the house but was just happy her family was safe.
“It’s not easy, it’s not easy but [the house] is material, that’s material. My family’s safe, that’s my first thing,” Marrero said.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
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