On May 11, at approximately 09:50 am the Revere Fire Department responded with a box response for a report of a fire in the basement at 451 Revere Beach Blvd.
The response included the Command vehicle, four Revere pump trucks, and two Revere ladder trucks, a Fire Investigation unit, a Massport pump and Cataldo Ambulance.
The four-story building, three floors above and one below housed eight apartments.
Deputy Chief Glen Rich, the incident Command, stated on arrival smoke was coming from the basement area doors and from the windows on the right rear side of the building. A tenant from the apartment where the fire began was outside and stated everyone in that unit was out. The Fire companies went to work extinguishing the fire, conducting a primary and secondary search of the building and checking for fire extension. All tenants were safely out of the building and the fire was contained to the apartment of origin with an estimated $30,000 of damage to the building and contents.
The Fire Investigation unit concluded that an unattended lit candle too close to combustibles was the cause. Many people use candles to light and decorate their homes; maybe it’s time to consider a safer alternative. At a minimum, always have candles in an appropriate container, keep them a safe distance from anything that can burn and never leave them unattended. The Chief of the Department hopes this article reinforces a message that cannot be mentioned enough times.
