DRACUT — Dracut firefighters responded early Tuesday morning to a three-alarm fire at an apartment building on Pearl Street.
More than two dozen residents of the 12-unit building at 10 Pearl St. had to evacuate after a fire broke out inside one of the units. Fire officials said in a statement Tuesday that responding firefighters arrived to see flames coming out the front windows and door of the unit.
The firefighters had been informed that there was a trapped occupant in the unit, causing them to strike second and third alarms for the fire. However, it was later found that there was nobody trapped.
The fire was extinguished within an hour of the call by crews on Dracut Fire Department’s Engine 3, who also evacuated approximately 25 residents from the building.
“Engine 3’s actions in taking care of the fire quickly and then helping residents leave the building were critical,” said Dracut Fire Chief Richard Patterson. “We could be looking at a much different situation this morning without their quick work.”
Officials said the unit the fire originated in is uninhabitable, and the units on either side of it suffered smoke damage. No injuries were reported from the blaze.
Mutual aid was provided on scene by the fire departments of Lowell, Methuen, Tyngsboro, and Pelham, N.H.
Station coverage was provided during the fire by the fire departments from Lawrence, and Nashua and Salem, N.H.
The Dracut Fire Department is investigating the cause of the fire. Patterson said in a phone call Tuesday afternoon that the fire was believed to be an accident, but that the actual cause has yet to be determined. He said just one person was displaced by the fire.
