Dec. 19--BRATTLEBORO -- An apartment tenant and a firefighter suffered injuries in a three-alarm fire at 72 Green St. on Wednesday, Brattleboro's fire chief said.
The fire caused extensive damage to the building and displaced those who lived in its five apartments, Chief D. Michael Bucossi wrote in a news release.
Firefighters learned from a group of tenants who escaped the burning building unharmed that they believed someone was still inside, Bucossi said. Firefighters attempted to make entry into the building, but were "quickly driven out by fire and heat," he wrote.
After going to the rear of the building in search of a second entry, firefighters saw the tenant on a back porch. The tenant, whose name was not available, was rescued and taken to Brattleboro Memorial Hospital for treatment of smoke inhalation.
A firefighter was treated at the scene and then taken to the Brattleboro hospital for an irregular heartbeat, Bucossi wrote.
Brattleboro firefighters discovered the fire Wednesday at 2:21 a.m. when they heard a noise coming from behind the fire station on Elliot Street. From a window at the station, firefighters saw flames coming from the back of 72 Green St.
Heavy fire engulfed the basement and first floor of the building. But to extinguish much of the blaze, firefighters had to work outside the structure, Bucossi wrote.
With the fire somewhat under control, firefighters searched for any other occupants -- which they did not find -- and finished extinguishing the blaze from inside, Bucossi wrote.
The tenants are receiving assistance from the Red Cross.
The Brattleboro Fire Department and Vermont State Police are investigating the cause of the fire.
Twenty firefighters from Brattleboro and surrounding Vermont and New Hampshire towns responded to the fire scene. They declared the fire under control at 5:35 a.m.
Alyssa Dandrea can be reached at 352-1234, extension 1435, or [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @ADandreaKS.
Copyright 2013 - The Keene Sentinel, N.H.
