Car Hits Wall, Bursts Into Flames, Fire Spreads To Worcester Home
WORCESTER (CBS) - A car slammed into wall and burst into flames late Monday night causing a fire that spread to a home in Worcester.
Police say the driver of a BMW was speeding on Cambridge Street just before 11 p.m. when he lost control and struck a wall outside of a triple-decker. The car caught fire and the flames quickly spread to the house, all the way through the roof.
"The fire was a little troubling towards us because this building has what's called gasoline siding, what we call in the fire department gasoline siding. It's asphalt siding underneath the vinyl so that caused rapid extension up to the soffits. The fire got up into the attic, which precipitated an attic collapse, so we had to pull everybody out," said Fire Chief Edward Thomas.
No one in the house was hurt. Police said the driver ran off, but he was tracked down a short time later by officers and brought back to the scene.
"Investigators determined that the driver was not under the influence of alcohol and/or narcotics. The driver was not placed under arrest but will be issued citations once the investigation comes to a conclusion," police said in a statement Tuesday.
The driver's name was not released. Investigators said he is a "local 28-year-old."
People in the neighborhood told WBZ-TV this isn't the first time they've seen a crash here.
"Something needs to be done at this intersection is my biggest, main concern," said resident Eileen McCullough. "I've been here for 15 years and I've gotten in three accidents."
"Nobody deserves their home just to be destroyed over something stupid," said resident Brittany Bartramaitis. "It's just something I would never expect to see. I just felt awful because you would never expect to see that, you really wouldn't."
Around the same time, there was a second fire in Worcester about a mile away. A pickup truck burst into flames at the intersection of Main Street and Curtis Parkway.
There's no word yet on any injuries in that fire.
