Displaced by blaze, Lynners look to put their lives back together

LYNN – Debbie Baclet peered around the ruins of her former Lewis Street home Thursday morning, looking for any sign of her dog, Kohl, who died in the four-alarm fire that consumed the corner building Wednesday.”I think I see his cage,” she said, pointing to a blackened metal frame as two Meninno Construction workers preparing the debris pile for removal gently urged her to check with Fire Department authorities for any additional information on her possessions.Baclet is one of 20 people, half of them children, displaced by the fire that destroyed three hair salons, a clothing store and a popular corner store frequented by area resident Jason Wade, who hopes San Francisco Market can find a new home.Baclet is staying with her sister-in-law for a few days while she arranges more permanent housing. Other families who lived above the stores were aided by the Red Cross last night.One of those families is receiving some help from the staff at Marshall Middle School, who say they have learned one of the fire victims is a seventh-grade student at the school, and is one of five school-aged children in his family.Guidance counselor Donna Horgan said the children range from elementary age to teenagers, and all of them have lost everything. The school has not been able to contact the family, who Horgan says have been moved to a Route 1 motel, but are taking donations of clothing, sleeping bags, winter coats, books and fun activities to try and keep the family’s spirits up.Anyone interested in donating to help the family can contact the guidance department at 781-477-7357.The initial investigation of the fire centers on the first floor of the hair salon located on the building’s Lewis Street side.”It’s quite possible something was left on,” said investigator David Legere, adding investigators need to speak with salon owners and the owner of the Brazilian store that operated next to it.Even as fire investigators work to find the cause of the second major fire in the Lewis Street area in a week, fire crews were standing by Thursday, ready to pour water on the smoking pile of debris remaining from the building.Firefighters got the blaze well under control before 3 p.m. Wednesday, but a partial collapse of the building onto Lewis Street about 4 p.m. prompted Acting Fire Chief James Carritte to consult with city building officials and raze unstable parts of the building.”We took it down. We had to step in to make it safe,” city Inspectional Services Director Michael Donovan said.By 11 p.m., Meninno Construction had pushed parts of the structure along Lewis and Chestnut streets away from the sidewalks so utility crews could shut off and cap gas service to the building. In addition to monitoring efforts to secure and remove debris today, Carritte plans to pin down reports of water pressure problems that plagued fire crews while they extinguished the blaze.Crews were unable to disconnect a hose from a hydrant on Ocean and Breed streets because it would not shut off.”We definitely had problems,” Carritte said.Water and Sewer Commission Director Daniel O’Neill said hydrants in the area were working but said he will evaluate water flow reports.”The volume of water in our system is up to fire protection standards but the number of pumpers being utilized was great,” O’Neill said, adding there is not a problem with hydrants in the area.Donovan said building owner Henry Nguyen is out of the country attending to family matters. City officials planned to contact Nguyen’s insurer to coordinate removal of building debris.His office faces coordinating a more complex removal with Osarumwense Omorogbe, owner of 60-62 Burrill Avenue, the three-story building damaged by fire last Friday. The fire left eight residents homeless. Omorogbe was facing foreclosure prior to the fire.Donovan said the city Board of Survey determined the building at the corner of Seymour Avenue by Kiley Playground is a hazard and must be demolished. He said foreclosure proceedings may force