At Least 5 Brockton Fires Blamed On July 4th Fireworks
BOSTON (CBS) – Fireworks are linked to at least five fires that broke out on the Fourth of July in Brockton. One of the fires broke out at a home on Martin Street around 11 p.m.
Firefighters said debris from fireworks was placed too close to the home. The fire caused serious damage.
"They had these fireworks, they were put in some receptacle or a disposal, they were placed too close to the building and that's what resulted in the fire," Brockton Fire Captain Stephen McLean said.
Despite a billboard in downtown Brockton advertising the sale of fireworks across the New Hampshire border, it's still illegal to have them in Massachusetts.
In Brockton, Captain McLean said it's especially dangerous to light them up.
"Especially in a congested neighborhoods like ours, we have a lot of three-deckers, two and a half story wood frame neighborhoods, so it creates kind of a fire hazard," McLean said.
This wasn't an isolated incident. Fireworks debris caused two dumpster fires and a blaze behind the Gilmore School overnight.
Captain McLean says it's a reminder of how dangerous fireworks can be.
"The fire on Martin Street, obviously fortunately there were no injuries to any of the occupants in the home and no injuries to any of the firefighters, but now you have four displaced occupants that are out of their homes due to the damage caused to it," McLean said.
