Officials: Elderly woman killed in Westborough house fire
A house fire in Westborough is under investigation after authorities say at least one person was killed.
Officials said it was around 1:45 p.m. when a report of a fire on Belknap Street came in.
Authorities with the Westborough Fire Department said they received a 911 call from the daughter of an elderly woman who lived at the address, who described how she had arrived at the property to find the building burning.
Officials told 7NEWS a police officer and the fire chief were the first to arrive on scene and learned the elderly woman was trapped.
They said the fire soon grew to a point where flames were shooting out of all of the home’s windows. Officials said multiple propane tanks on the property exploded. Firefighters also had to contend with flames that spread to trees behind the home.
“We had crews operating inside and it was already a dangerous enough environment that, when those explosions occurred, it just put us at an increased risk,” Fire Chief Patrick Purcell said.
Crews were eventually able to get inside of the property and found the body of the elderly woman in the home’s living room.
Sharon Gravlin, who lives close to the fire location, said she grew up in the neighborhood.
“We’ve never had a fatality,” she said. “So, it is pretty devastating.”
Purcell said the fire started in the home’s living room.
Fire investigators, crime scene services and Massachusetts State Police will now work together to determine what caused the fire.
“We work and train every day to try to avoid incidents like this so, when we arrive at a scene and find it as challenging as it is and we’re not as successful as we would like, it is a dark day for the fire department,” Purcell said.
Purcell said a police officer who responded to this fire was taken to a hospital for smoke inhalation.
A firefighter also suffered minor hand injuries, according to Purcell, and was treated at the scene. He is expected to be okay.