Thick black smoke and heavy flames tore through a vacant commercial building on Foundry Street in Wakefield Friday afternoon, prompting emergency officials to escalate the response to a 5th-alarm fire. The blaze forced road closures across the neighborhood and disrupted MBTA commuter rail service on tracks running parallel to the street.
Emergency crews battled the massive fire after responding to the vacant structure, according to WHDH. As reported by Hindustan Times, officials elevated the fire to five alarms as smoke and flames poured from the building, underscoring the scale of the emergency response and the need for coordinated mutual aid across the region. The cause of the fire remains unknown at this time, and it is not yet known whether anyone was injured.
Trains Halted, Roads Closed Near the Scene
The fire's proximity to the Haverhill Line tracks led the MBTA to terminate inbound Train 250 at Wakefield, while Train 1249 was stopped after Greenwood and ran 20 to 30 minutes behind schedule because of emergency fire operations near the right-of-way, per the MBTA. The disruption reflects how directly Foundry Street's industrial corridor intersects with regional transit into Boston.
On the ground, Wakefield Police closed Broadway between North Avenue and Lake Street, along with North Avenue between Main Street and West Water Street, setting up detours around the affected area. The closures effectively cordoned off access to the industrial strip adjacent to the rail line while crews worked the blaze. As of Friday afternoon, the fire remained a developing story, and injuries and cause were both still unknown.
A Corridor With a Long Industrial and Fire History
Foundry Street takes its name from the area's 19th-century manufacturing roots, dating back to 1854 when the Boston & Maine Foundry Company and Smith & Anthony Stove Company produced stoves and plumbing products along the railroad tracks, according to NOBLE Digital Heritage. The corridor has seen major fires before, including a three-alarm blaze at 62 Foundry Street in March 1979 and a three-alarm arson fire at 116 Foundry Street in August 1980, per Wakefield Fire Department history.
In recent years, the same stretch has undergone significant redevelopment, most notably the construction of The Foundry Lofts, an 83-unit, five-story condominium complex at 69 Foundry Street completed in 2021, according to Homes.com. Land along the street remains primarily zoned Industrial, allowing a mix of commercial uses, light industrial businesses, and newer variance-backed residential projects to sit close together, per Wakefield's own annual town report.
Local Crews Lean on Regional Mutual Aid
The Wakefield Fire Department operates with 55 career firefighters out of two stations serving a town of roughly 27,000 residents, according to the Town of Wakefield. For an incident of this scale, the department has relied on the Metrofire mutual aid network since December 1980, which allows Newton Control to dispatch pre-designated engine and ladder companies from 35 Greater Boston communities during multi-alarm fires like this one.
Wakefield crews have faced major commercial fires before. In March 2024, firefighters responded to a blaze at a local strip mall that required specialized rescue efforts for exotic reptiles, though no people were injured, as Hoodline previously reported. Friday's fire marks another significant test for the department and its regional partners as it works to contain the blaze along a corridor now shared by vacant industrial buildings and newer residential development.
As of Friday evening, officials had not released the building's exact address, its ownership, or whether it had any prior safety violations. The cause of the fire and the full extent of any injuries remain unconfirmed, and MBTA service disruptions were expected to continue until the scene is cleared.
