WHITMAN — Chief Timothy Clancy reports that the Whitman Fire Department, aided by firefighters from area towns including Rockland, extinguished a fire at a home on West Street Thursday morning, Sept. 15.
No injuries were reported as a result of the fire, but two cats owned by the family were killed in the blaze. All five people who live the home were out of the building by the time firefighters arrived on scene. It is reported that a passerby who was walking his dog saw the fire and alerted the occupants, allowing them to safely exit the building by the time crews arrived.
Smoke alarms in the house evidently went off as the residents escaped the fire, Whitman Deputy Chief Al Cunningham said in published reports
The identity of the “mystery man” has been the talk of the town in the week since the blaze.
At approximately 5:35 a.m. Thursday, Sept. 15, Whitman Fire received a call for a structure fire at a two-story residential home at 137 West St. in town. Upon arrival, firefighters saw heavy smoke and fire coming from the rear exterior of the second story of the home.
A second alarm was struck for additional manpower as firefighters began an aggressive attack. Upon entering the home firefighters found that the fire had extended into the first floor of the structure.
The fire was knocked down after approximately 30 minutes. Firefighters remained on scene for hours conducting overhaul of the building. Cunningham said, while it doesn’t appear that the house is a complete loss, it’ll be some time before anyone can live in it.
Fire crews from East Bridgewater, Brockton, Hanson and Rockland responded to the scene, as did ambulances from Halifax and Norwell. Bridgewater Fire provided station coverage.
The fire remains under investigation by the Whitman Fire Department and the State Fire Marshal’s Office.