Marblehead ice cream parlor melts under 2-alarm blaze

MARBLEHEAD – A two-alarm blaze broke out in the rear of Terry’s Ice Cream Shop and 5 Corners Kitchen on School Street Tuesday afternoon.Marblehead Fire Captain Mike Porter said crews arrived on scene around 1:30 p.m. and quickly climbed to the roof of the building, where holes were drilled into the roof. Thick plumes of black smoke could be seen pouring from the building, which Porter estimates to have suffered more than $50,000 in damages.Both businesses sustained heavy smoke damage, but Porter said Terry’s is far worse.”They will definitely not be open for a while, even though tonight would have been a good night for ice cream,” he quipped.Porter said the blaze, which is believed to have started in a communal basement of the building, quickly traveled up a wall and tore through the ceiling.Mutual aid from Lynn, Salem, Swampscott and Melrose assisted with the blaze, which Porter said was a “huge help.””Without it, we would have been in big trouble,” he said. “Everyone did a fantastic job.”Streets around the blaze were blocked off for more than two hours as fire crews doused hot spots and checked the interior. A crowd gathered at the scene, where the smoke and flames only added to the steamy weather conditions.The cause remains under investigation. No injuries were reported and a cooling station had been set up to relieve firefighters on scene.