Fire destroyed a building that was once a historic hotel in downtown Leominster (MA), and two firefighters were injured when a brick wall collapsed and pieces struck fire ladders, reports CBS Boston.
The building houses 20 apartment units on its upper two floors and businesses on the first floor. Firefighters from more than a dozen communities were called in to help battle the massive flames.
Fire Chief Robert Sidleau said the firefighters who were injured were in a bucket on a ladder truck when a wall collapsed on them. He says medics who took them to a hospital said they thought the firefighters would be OK.
Sidleau said all residents made it out of the building safely. The cause is still under investigation, but officials say the fire originated in the attic.
The city’s Historical Preservation Commission Chairman, Donald Piermarini, said the Columbia Hotel building was built in 1892 by two prominent men in the city at the time. John H. Lockey and Judge Hamilton Mayo, along with an architect from Dunn & Ingraham, positioned the hotel next to the railroad depot to house travelers.
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