20 homeless as Lynn firefighters battle flames, deep freeze

LYNN – Twenty people were left homeless Wednesday when a four-alarm fire broke out about noon and tied down firefighters through the afternoon as it destroyed two buildings and damaged a third at the corner of Chestnut and Lewis streets.Temperatures hovered around 20 degrees when the fire erupted in a small alleyway in between two of the buildings, said District Fire Chief Robert Bourgeois, who said water pressure problems hampered firefighting efforts.”The first hydrant malfunctioned. The water pressure in this neighborhood is very poor,” Bourgeois said. “It’s a chronic problem. There are old mains in this neighborhood ? and it’s far away from the pumping station.”A cause of the fire is still under investigation.There were no injuries from the fire but word spread late afternoon that a dog had died.Click here to see a photo gallery from Wednesday’s fire.Bourgeois said firefighters got the first call at 12:09 p.m. and arrived to find massive flames.”It started in between the two buildings in a very small space less than two feet,” he said. “It was roaring.”The district chief said firefighters checked the building for people inside despite initial reports that no one was inside, just to be safe. However, they were quickly pulled out of the building due to the fire’s intensity.Bourgeois said Lynn firefighters who were attending a funeral for a Boston firefighter in Quincy saw the smoke from there. People in Winthrop and Revere also reported seeing smoke as it drifted across Lynn Harbor well into the afternoon.Gerry Howard and his girlfriend were sleeping on the third floor of the main building at 219 Lewis when they spotted smoke and fire coming out of the roof of the neighboring building that contains Brazilian clothing store Planeta Brazil.”By the time we made it outside the fire was already on the building,” he said. “I just started crying.”Firefighters and several residents credited a passerby, later identified as Kyle Donoghue, with running into 3 Chestnut as the flames spread and knocking on doors to alert residents.Reports late afternoon indicated one of the buildings began to collapse. Bourgeois said at a 3:30 p.m. press conference that he would ask Mayor Edward Clancy permission to tear the buildings down.This is the second time in a week the Lynn Fire Department was forced to fight a major fire. A three-alarm fire broke out Friday morning at 60 Burrill Ave.Bourgeois said four apartments and four businesses were lost at 3 Chestnut and one apartment and one business was lost at 219R Lewis. Four families, including nine adults and 11 children were left homeless.The buildings housed at least three ground-floor businesses, including San Francisco Market, Roma salon and Planeta Brazil. Firefighters poured water from several vantage points onto 3 Chestnut as flames shot from the building’s upper stories.Several residents were being aided by the Red Cross after spending Wednesday afternoon staying warm aboard an MBTA bus parked on Lewis Street a half block from their former home. Firefighters also took advantage of the bus as many were covered in ice.Fire Captain Robert Bourke said the building was not equipped with sprinkler systems but fire codes did not require the building to have them.Fire equipment and crews from several communities including Swampscott, Winthrop, Salem and Wakefield were among the out-of-town companies providing mutual aid.According to the city of Lynn Assessors Officer, the property at 219 R Lewis St. is owned by Nguyen Property LLC, which is located at 45 Harrington St. in Newton. The property was purchased in May 2006 and it is currently assessed at $314,1000. According to the city collectors office no outstanding taxes are due on the property.City records also indicate Nguyen Properties LLC also owns 228 Lewis Street, which located right next door. That property was also purchased in 2006 an is assessed at $520,400.