PHOTO COURTESY BEN CLEARY
Marblehead firefighters work to put out a boxtruck that caught fire on Bubier Road in Marblehead on Wednesday.
BY GAYLA CAWLEY
MARBLEHEAD — A box truck full of chemicals caught fire on Bubier Road Wednesday morning but no one was injured.
Thomas Rice, Marblehead’s acting fire captain, said they received a call about a 24-foot foam insulation company vehicle that was fully engulfed.
Valerie Larkin, of 11 Bubier Rd., said she had hired Dr. Energy Home Services to spray insulate her home, and was not home at the time of the fire. She was notified through text message by friends, and drove home from Boston.
“The fire didn’t affect the house,” Larkin said.
Inside the truck were a generator and 55-gallon drums of chemicals. When the chemicals are mixed, they are put through the nose and nozzle, producing the foam that was being sprayed into the house, Rice said.
Since the fire station is a block away on Ocean Avenue, Rice said firefighters responded within minutes, including Chief Jason Gilliland. Also responding were crews from Swampscott and Salem.
“They did a fast attack and put out the fire in a few minutes,” Rice said. “During the overhaul, that’s when they noticed the barrels of chemicals and called Hazmat.”
Rice said the Hazmat response escalated from a level one to a level two when the team entered a confined space and needed a back-up crew. Also called to the scene was the Department of Environmental Protection.
Two of the barrels containing chemicals were damaged, but Rice didn’t know to what degree. He didn’t know if any toxic liquids were released into the air, but seemed convinced they were contained in the truck.
“They did a good job putting it out before it became a chemical problem,” Rice said.
Ben Cleary, a neighbor who lives on Bubier Road, said he was working at home when the fire broke out. He saw the smoke and heard the sirens, stepped out of his house and saw the truck was on fire.
Cleary said the truck was spraying insulation into the attic when some of the machinery on the back of the vehicle caught fire. He said fire crews and other emergency responders moved everyone back, out of a concern for the hazardous materials. He was surprised that the fire didn’t spread, given its size.
“It could have been a lot worse if it wasn’t for the Marblehead Fire Department,” Cleary said.
Rice said there was no damage to surrounding houses, and neighbors were not required to evacuate their homes, but Bubier Road was shut down from Pleasant Street to Atlantic Avenue.
Gayla Cawley can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @GaylaCawley
