PEABODY — A three-alarm fire tore through a home on Wheatland Street on a windy, cold Wednesday morning, leaving the roof on the brink of collapse as firefighting operations stretched into the afternoon.
Firefighters were called to a reported structure fire at 4 Wheatland St. between 10:30 a.m. and 10:45 a.m. Fire Chief Jay Dowling said during a press conference at the scene Wednesday. One person was inside the home when the fire broke out and was able to escape unharmed, Dowling added. Two other relatives were outside the house at the time.
First-responder companies encountered heavy heat and heavy fire on the scene and were quickly ordered out of the building.
All companies were still working to battle the fire, which Dowling said was “in the house, in the walls, in the attic, in the knee walls.”
“It’s going to be a bit,” he said. “We’re going to be here for a while.”
“The guys and girls are doing a great job. Hopefully, we get out of here soon,” Dowling added.
While Dowling said officials had “no idea yet” where the blaze began, early indications suggested it started outside the home and extended inside on a windy morning. The building’s balloon-frame construction meant it “took right off,” Dowling said.
He said the roof had been compromised, and firefighters taped off an area of the scene due to concerns it would collapse.
The property is owned by Gregory Lane, who operates his electrical business out of the home, said Kathy Bettencourt, who runs the nearby Carmelite Sisters’ Holy Childhood Preschool.
As firefighting efforts continued, police blocked off Prospect Street from Lowell Street to Felton Street, and encouraged residents to avoid the area where the blaze broke out.
