Dozens Displaced as MA Blaze Damages Eight Buildings

LAWRENCE — A six-alarm fire Sunday destroyed three multifamily buildings on Bennington Street, displacing over 50 residents, sending two firefighters and a civilian to the hospital with heat exhaustion, and causing more than $1 million in damage.

The blaze broke out about 3:30 p.m., bringing firefighters from Haverhill, North Andover and 16 other communities in Essex and Middlesex counties.

Five additional fire departments provided station coverage for Lawrence firefighters as they focused all their efforts on Bennington Street.

Firefighters appeared to have the blaze under control as of 6 p.m. but were still dousing flames from ladder trucks perched on each end of the row of homes where flames raged only a few hours earlier.

The fire’s cause is still under investigation, according to Lawrence Fire Chief Brian Moriarty and state Fire Marshal Peter Ostroskey. Anyone with photos or video of the fire in its earliest stages is asked to contact the Lawrence Fire Department at 978-620-3403.

By 9 p.m. the Fire Marshal’s Office raised the total number of structures affected by the fire to eight. The three destroyed buildings are at 127-129 Bennington St., 131-133 Bennington St. and 137-139 Bennington St.

In addition, the Fire Marshal’s Office confirmed that 123-125 Bennington St., 141-143 Bennington St., 146 Saratoga St., 150 Saratoga St. and a seven-bay garage adjacent to 150 Saratoga St. all received damage.

In a statement issued Sunday night, Fire Marshal’s Office spokeswoman Jennifer Mieth said the Saratoga Street homes were single-family residences,

The fire spread quickly in the dense neighborhood.

“First-arriving units had three buildings heavily involved in fire,” Moriarty said, as he recapped the initial response to the blaze. “It’s a very tight neighborhood, built many years ago, so it’s all balloon-framed triple-deckers.

The fire displaced more than 50 people, according to the American Red Cross.

Moriarty described the three buildings that were destroyed as two triple-decker houses with flat roofs and a two-and-a-half-story home with a wood frame.

On Saratoga Street, two more homes were seriously damaged along with the garage, Moriarty said. The fire chief added that as fire crews arrived, civilians were helping to pull a resident from a home and firefighters pulled a second person from one of the buildings.

No one was seriously injured or killed. No further details were released on the two firefighters and civilian treated for heat exhaustion.

“We’re very fortunate,” Moriarty said. “If this were in the middle of the night, the story would be different.”

Neighbors, victims speak

All along Bennington Street, residents came out onto their stoops to watch firefighters tackle the flames. People came from several blocks away stopped by to see what was happening, trekking through pools of water several inches deep along Bennington Street.

At times, the smoke was so thick that spectators, news media and displaced residents had to retreat further down the street to keep from choking.

Bennington Street resident Roland Bryant, 73, said he heard firetrucks outside his home about 3:20 p.m. but thought nothing of it initially.

“Then, I went out on the porch and saw smoke everywhere,” said Bryant, who has lived at 100 Bennington St. for 42 years.

While he doesn’t know many people who live in the homes affected by the fire, Bryant said he heard those he did know made it out safely.

Antonio Donis, the owner of a home destroyed at 137-139 Bennington St., said he was taking out the garbage when he saw the fire begin on the first floor of the house at 133-135 Bennington St.

He immediately ran to evacuate the residents of his house, which include his wife, Ilian Lopez, his son-in-law, his daughter — who is eight months pregnant — a granddaughter and a family friend.

“I’ve lived here for 25 years. We recently put balconies on (the house),” said Donis, who emigrated to the United States from Spain more than 40 years ago. “I just hope I can get in to get my IDs and my wife’s medicine because she’s disabled.

It is unknown exactly how many people were displaced by the fire but Moriarty and Mayor Daniel Rivera said the Arlington School at 150 Arlington St. has been opened up as a shelter.

In addition, area nonprofit organizations such as Progress Clothing are helping to provide clothing for displaced residents in the Bennington Street area.

“We’ll be pushing the Red Cross and the state police there as well,” Rivera said of the Arlington School shelter. “We’ll be getting a head count to see which families we’re helping, and get some of those kids to school tomorrow.”

Rivera praised the efforts of city firefighters and the help from outside fire departments in fighting the fire.

“This is the second time I’ve seen them work as fast as they have. They just go at the fire in a way that saves lives and saves property,” he said of city firefighters. “We’d be talking about more than three total losses if it wasn’t for the actions of not only Lawrence but of the region.”

In addition to 90-degree heat and wind, firefighters struggled at times with poor water pressure as they fought the blaze and had to extend hoses and pump water from as far as two blocks away.

“Heat was a problem and we needed a lot of water, fast. It took us awhile to get the lines laid,” Moriarty said, adding that mutual aid firefighters helped relay water from hydrants nearby.

At-large Lawrence City Councilor Modesto Maldonado saw the flames from his home on Spruce Street and stopped by Bennington Street to inspect the damage

Maldonado, who is challenging Rivera in this fall’s mayoral race, called the fire “a shame” and added that it highlights a need for more affordable housing in the city.

“We have such a shortage of affordable units in the city and this is going to put an even greater burden on us,” Maldonado said, adding that he estimates more than 50 people could have been displaced based on the number of people who typically reside in the triple-decker homes on the street.

And while the lives of himself and his family have changed forever, Donis said the most important thing is that there were no deaths as a result of the fire.

“At least everyone got out safe,” he said. “That’s the most important thing.”

Helping the afflicted

In a Facebook post published Sunday night, Rivera listed ways concerned residents can assist those displaced by the fire.

The mayor encouraged the donation of $25 gift cards to grocery stores such as Market Basket and retailers, including Walmart, Target and Kohl’s, to help displaced Lawrencians buy personal items and clothing during their stay at the emergency shelter.

Rivera also encouraged the donation of books and games for children displaced by the blaze.

Working with Heal Lawrence, a nonprofit based at 5 Bennington St. whose aim is to assist Lawrence residents displaced by fires and other disasters, Rivera encouraged anyone with knowledge of any available apartments to contact the organization.

Once the Arlington School shelter is discontinued, Rivera said the displaced will need hotel rooms if they do not have a new place.

“Most hotel rooms run just over $110 a night and must be paid in person on a credit card,” he wrote, before imploring neighbors to keep an eye on the burned-out homes to prevent thieves from entering.

Anyone who would like to assist in helping those in the Arlington School shelter can email Heal Lawrence Director Wayne Hayes at [email protected].

Follow Peter Francis on Twitter @PeterMFrancis

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