CHELSEA, Mass. — Crews are battling a massive 9-alarm overnight warehouse fire in Chelsea.
The fire started just after midnight in a vacant warehouse on Forbes Road. Video shows massive flames lighting up the night sky.
Firefighters as far as Newton have come to help battle the intense flames.
The warehouse dates back to 1900′s when it was built for the Forbes Lithograph Manufacturing company. This printing process used oil and printed things like posters, tags, and tickets. The company was sold in the 1960s, and the building closed.
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In 2008 a developer tried to convert the building into offices and living spaces, but the project was abandoned.
According to fire officials, crews always had a plan in place in case a fire happened.
“It is on our radar. We are always worried about something like this happening. So our fire prevention division did a weekly inspection, along with some of the city inspectors, just to keep an eye on it. We try to have the owner of this property keep it as secure as he could, but obviously it is a pretty big site and people get in there,” Chelsea Fire Department Chief John Quatieri said.
The Newburyport/Rockport Line is currently suspended due to fire activity and multiple streets in the area have been blocked off.
Classes are canceled at the Mary C. Burke Elementary Complex. All other schools in Chelsea will remain open.
It remains unknown if anyone was hurt in the fire.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
A Chelsea resident shot this video of the vacant warehouse that caught fire overnight on Forbes St. The fire chief says the fire has grown to 9 alarms. It’s an exterior attack. They’ve been doing weekly checks on this building as people have been known to go in there. @boston25 pic.twitter.com/yPDxcK34lg
— Kelly Sullivan (@ksullivannews) November 18, 2024
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