Teddy Tauscher
The Eagle-Tribune, North Andover, Mass.
(MCT)
Jul. 9—HAVERHILL — A two-alarm fire heavily damaged a three-unit apartment building on Pilling Street Saturday, leaving at least 11 people homeless.
There were no injuries to residents of the building, located at 42-46 Pilling St., although one firefighter was treated for heat exhaustion while another was treated for lacerations, according to Fire Chief Robert O’Brien.
The fire began at 1:54 p.m., O’Brien said, noting that firefighters actually saw the smoke from the High Street fire station, and responded even before the first 911 call came in.
Wendy Hamilton, who lives two doors down from the location of the fire, said she helped alert residents.
“We just banged on the doors, trying to get people out to make sure everyone was out of the house,” she said. “Somebody ran down the street trying to get the fire department aware of the situation.”
Area resident Barbara Grace witnessed the fire as well, describing it as “blazing” with “black smoke.” She said she heard somebody yelling: “Get out of the building!”
O’Brien said the three families would not be able to move back in to the building immediately. However, he also said that firefighters had done a good job containing the flames, making it possible that the building can be repaired.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation, he said.
Jeff Hall, a spokesman for the American Red Cross, said that the agency is providing the 11 people displaced by the fire with financial assistance for hotels and basic supplies in the coming weeks.
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