A large fire in Boston's Dorchester neighborhood displaced dozens of people from their homes early Wednesday morning, authorities said.
The fire occurred at 7 Carson St. at about 5 a.m., the Boston Fire Department said, and spread to the buildings on both sides.
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"This had taken off before they got there — three buildings were going. That was the initial report," said Fire Commissioner Paul Burke.
Fire officials said 33 people, including two children and two elderly people, and their pets were rescued from the burning homes.
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"I heard it. Thought it was rain, but when I woke up I saw the fire," said Saikrishna Kilaru, escaped the fire.
Kilaru says he was hanging out with his friends for a few days, all of them are local college students who got out safely on their own. But Burke says it took about 100 firefighters from South Boston, Roxbury and Dorchester close to 45 minutes to navigate the flames and the tricky terrain.
"They did a great job because the buildings are so close together. It was tight for them initially and they had rescues," he said.
An elderly couple was pulled from the third floor. Burke says the firefighters had to use hundreds of feet of hose to make up for the fact that they could only attack from the ground.
"They had wires that were hanging low in the street so they couldn’t put the aerial up," he said.
Although no firefighter could get on the roof, their efforts were successful and as many families sat together watching firefighters run in and out of their former home, Kilaru phoned across the world to speak to his.
"They’re back in India, so I just made a call. That's it," said Kilaru.
One firefighter suffered minor injuries battling the blaze.
All 33 people displaced are accounted for and safe. The Salvation Army and the American Red Cross worked with fire officials to assist the residents.
