In a rapid response to a fire outbreak in Beverly, more than a dozen residents were forced from their homes after a car blaze quickly spread to two apartment buildings. The Beverly Fire Department reported that the conflagration initiated with a vehicle parked in the driveway between the structures located at 3 Bennett St., where Deputy Chief Ryan Laracy upon arrival noticed "heavy smoke and a car on fire."
The gravity of the situation was apparent when the fire was found extending to both buildings, prompting Laracy to call for additional manpower through second and third alarm assignments. Support was swiftly on scene with Engine 1 and Ladder 1 arriving, there they took immediate action against the fire creeping up the external surfaces of the buildings and while additional crews entered the residences to check on inhabitants and forestall further indoor fire spread. "Firefighters from Salem, Beverly, Danvers, Hamilton, Peabody, and Manchester by the Sea all worked aggressively to dig the fire out and extinguish it before it got too far," the Beverly Fire Department detailed on their Facebook post.
The fire at 23 Bennett was mainly confined to the building’s exterior; however, damage left the first-floor apartment unsuitable for habitation. The unit count of uninhabitable apartments went up to four, including three apartments in the neighboring 25 Bennett. Despite the extensive intervention by firefighters, "more than 12 people were displaced in 25 Bennett" as reported by the Beverly Fire Department's post with those affected now receiving aid from the Red Cross and relatives for temporary living arrangements.
While property loss is distressing, the department highlights a glimmer of hope, "Thanks to the hard work of all crews on the scene, no one was injured and many of the personal items in both buildings can be salvaged," an outcome often not feasible when the fury of fire takes hold; an investigation by the Beverly Fire Department Fire Investigation Unit remains underway to uncover how the fire originated.
