A six-alarm fire engulfed two residential buildings in East Boston early Tuesday morning.
One resident died while at least six people, including one child, have been hospitalized. The fire also displaced 30 people, Boston Fire Commissioner Paul F. Burke said at a press conference Tuesday morning.
The fire started at around 5 a.m. in a multifamily building on the 400 block of Meridian Street near the intersection of West Eagle Street. The fire spread to two adjacent buildings.
“You're talking about 30 people who have had their entire lives upended,” said state Rep. Adrian Madaro. “There's going to be a lot of work to do to make sure that we uplift the impacted families and support them in every way possible, because those folks have lost everything.”
Judy Lyons, an East Boston resident, lives next to one of the buildings that caught on fire. She said she could see the flames from her backyard.
“This house is family-owned, and they have lost a lot,” Lyons said. “The two boys from the third floor, the thing they were most upset about was that they forgot their little stuffy that they sleep with.”
Lyons said one of the residents in that building was training to be a firefighter and was able to get everybody out.
Mayor Michelle Wu, who joined Burke at the press conference, said the city will do whatever it can to support those who are injured and displaced by the fire.
“I want to thank all of our first responders and our neighborhood services teams who are here in a moment's notice also to provide support for those families who are displaced and who are going to continue working with those families,” Wu said.
Burke said the displaced residents are currently being helped by the Red Cross, Salvation Army and the city’s Neighborhood Services Department.
A spokesperson for the Red Cross Massachusetts said they are currently assisting 21 adults and two children from both buildings.
He added that it can take about a month for them to get resettled in new housing, but they will receive financial and housing assistance in the meantime.
Madaro said they have already gotten some of the displaced families temporary hotel stays. In addition, they are partnering with nonprofit organizations, like East Boston Social Centers and East Boston Mutual Aid, to raise money for those affected.
“We got to work on making sure that the children are able to get the resources they need to be successful and get back at the school,” Madaro said. “For the families, we need to make sure that they have roofs over their heads and food in their stomachs, anything and everything you can imagine.”
