Lynn

Firefighters Battle Flames, Intense Wind on North Shore

Wind gusts between 30 and 50 mph caused "major problems," according to the fire chief in Lynn, Massachusetts

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Strong winds fed the flames as fires broke out in two cities on the North Shore of Massachusetts Monday night, and another on the South Shore Tuesday.

Crews in Lynn battled heavy fire into the early hours of Tuesday morning as it spread quickly throughout a three-family home on Murphy Avenue.

The Lynn Fire Department was called around 11:30 p.m. Monday, according to Chief Stephen Archer, who said it would be a "tough and stubborn" fire to put out.

"It's causing really, really tough conditions for us," Archer said.

Wind gusts reached between 30 and 50 mph overnight, which caused "major problems," according to Archer.

All 11 people who live in the building got out safely but are now displaced. One firefighter suffered minor injuries.

Meanwhile, in Salem, crews battled a fire in the same conditions and had to evacuate the building.

The wind was a "big problem," according to Salem Deputy Fire Chief John Payne, as firefighters tried to douse the flames at a multi-family home on Broadway.

The people who live in the building are now displaced, but no one was injured. The Beverly Fire Department was on scene to help put out the fire, which was near Salem State University.

Heavy winds toppled a tree into a home, knocked the side off a Boston building and made fires hard to fight in Massachusetts Tuesday.

And Tuesday afternoon, Quincy firefighters put out flames at a two-family home on Safford Street, but not before the building was charred.

Two people were home at the time of the fire but were able to get out safely. The three-alarm blaze was difficult to fight because of the strong winds that persisted into Tuesday.

"You have to be careful with ventilation on a day like today," Quincy Deputy Chief Gary Smyth said. "If you break windows on the wrong side, do something like that, it creates a wind tunnel and it's just adding fuel to the fire."

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