Earlier today, Worcester firefighters faced a tough battle against a wind-driven fire that spread across multiple homes under icy conditions. The incident began just before 5:15 a.m. at 36 Stoneland Road, where the fire was reported to have engulfed the second and third floors of a multi-level house. According to a Boston 25 News report, Assistant Fire Chief Adam Roache indicated that high winds contributed to spreading embers, which caused additional fires in at least two to three nearby houses, requiring an escalation to a third alarm for extra resources.
Despite the treacherous conditions which included slippery roads and freezing lines, no injuries have been recorded, save for a few minor slips and falls. Roache stressed the adversity faced in his statement, "The roads are obviously very slippery, lines are freezing...But the firefighters overcame that," as obtained by Boston 25 News. The weather team anticipated that the strong winds, with gusts between 55 to 65 mph, were likely to persist into the evening, potentially causing further problems such as damage to trees and powerlines.
The blaze, which ultimately displaced at least five people from the initial residence, was reportedly under control before 7 a.m. WHDH News coverage noted that two other homes were also damaged by the fire, with one neighboring house taking side damage and another a couple of blocks away being affected by embers. The total number of displacements from nearby buildings was yet to be confirmed, according to Roache.
Assistant Fire Chief Adam Roache described the firefighting efforts amid the icy gusts, "These are not ideal conditions. Obviously it's very windy, the wind was blowing in several different directions at the same time, swirling, really increased the intensity of the fire. it was not an easy fire to get under control but the crews did a good job trying to get ahead of this," Roache said as told to WHDH News. The cause of the fire remains under investigation with further updates expected to be provided as more information becomes available.
