Several families are without a place to live after an early morning fire tore through their multi-family home in Medford, Massachusetts.
Flames started shooting from the back of the Forest Street house just after 6 a.m. on Labor Day.
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Neighbor Gregg Danilchuk says he was having coffee with his wife on their porch when they saw the smoke, and then called 911.
"We saw this huge black plume of smoke coming down Forest Street, and I’m like that doesn’t look normal,” recalled Danilchuk, who also snapped video on his cell phone.
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"My first reaction is how the heck did this start?" he added. "The whole back of the house was engulfed, like really bad. Under the roof cap you know.”
According to the Medford Fire Department, The fire had quickly spread to the third floor, forcing crews to switch into defensive mode.
"It was a lot of extensive work and heat on the third floor. Very difficult fire to get to,” Medford Fire Deputy Chief Scott Graham said.
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The deputy chief said two people on the first floor and one person on the second had made it out of the house by the time firefighters arrived. Luckily no one was injured.
The home is a total loss. The house next door also sustained some damage.
"Just watching the fire guys hosing it down, was just horrified the whole time,” neighbor John Wynot said.
Medford police said multiple roads were closed, including Forest Street from Lawrence Road to Water Street, and people were asked to avoid the area.
Fire investigators are now looking into where the fire started and what the cause was.
