I-Team: Space Heater Among Possible Causes Of Fire That Killed Worcester Fire Lt. Jason Menard
WORCESTER (CBS) – Sources told the WBZ-TV I-Team the overnight fire that killed Worcester Fire Lt. Jason Menard does not appear to be criminal in nature.
Flames broke out in a home on Stockholm Street around 1 a.m. on Wednesday. Firefighters got a report that a woman and her baby were trapped on the third floor. As they went up there, they became pinned in by heavy fire.
Menard was hailed as a hero after he helped members of his unit safely escape the home. Menard, however, became trapped and later died.
Sources told the WBZ-TV chief investigative reporter Cheryl Fiandaca that the fire appears to have started in a second floor bedroom.
Investigators are looking at the building's electrical system and the possibility that a space heater was being used, sources said.
Three other firefighters were rushed to the hospital, as was a woman who was in the house. One firefighter remains hospitalized with serious injuries, while the other two have since been released.
Menard was the 10th Worcester firefighter to die in the line of duty since 1999.
