BROCKTON, Mass. — Neighbor-recorded video captured flames tearing through a multifamily home in Brockton, Massachusetts, on Oct. 26 before firefighters arrived. Five people were ultimately rescued from the building, while others managed to escape on their own.
The footage shows one person attempting to knock out ground-floor windows with a fire extinguisher as the flames intensified, WCVB reported. Some residents tied sheets and blankets into a makeshift rope, anchored it to a bed and climbed out of a second-story window, while others remained trapped inside.
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“I was in my office; I could hear them on the phone through the dispatch console, saying they couldn’t get out,” Brockton Fire Department Chief Bran Nardelli said. “Our operators were telling them to stay low and get to a window.”
Upon arrival, crews found heavy fire at the front of the building and occupants hanging out of the windows, officials said. Firefighters immediately went to work placing ground ladders to rescue occupants while other crews fought the flames, ultimately rescuing five people.
Nardelli said rescues over ground ladders are among the most difficult tasks firefighters perform, and that successfully carrying out that many rescues while also attacking the fire came down to staffing levels, which he credited with saving lives that day.
One firefighter called a mayday after running low on air, WHDH reported.
“We had one firefighter that was up there, they were doing a search because there was a report someone might still be in the building. He ran low on air and called a mayday,” Nardelli said. “He’s okay now.”
Four firefighters were taken to a hospital to be evaluated. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
