MIDDLEBOROUGH, Mass. — A man was rushed to the hospital with serious burns while crews battled two building fires and a brush fire on the same property Tuesday afternoon.
According to the Middleborough Fire Department, firefighters responding to a report of a blaze at 61 Vernon Street around 3 p.m. saw smoke and flames shooting from the roof of a barn behind the house.
The flames spread to the outside of the home and into the surrounding brush in the yard, creating several fire scenes companies had to contend with.
To make matters more difficult, the closest fire hydrants were about a mile away from the home, according to officials.
“We had two structure fires and a grass fire simultaneously,” said Chief Owen Thompson.
Four people were able to escape the residence before firefighters arrived, but one man sustained second-degree burns to his “lower extremities,” according to authorities.
The man was transported by Coastal EMS to Rhode Island Hospital. Officials say his injuries are not considered to be life-threatening.
Due to the extensive flames, mutual aid was called to the scene and about 35 firefighters from surrounding towns assisted.
A rotating line of tankers filled portable tanks to provide water to crews battling the blaze, which eventually helped to extinguish the flames.
“Our firefighters did a fantastic job, especially with the amount of fire they faced when they first arrived, with limited water,” Chief Thompson said. “They made sure to battle the fire consuming the home and took care of the burn victim at the same time. This was the second structure fire that our crews battled today, and they did an incredible job.”
The cause of the fire remains under investigation, although preliminary reports indicate the flames started outside of the barn and spread to the adjacent structures.
The Lakeville, Taunton, Carver, Plymouth, Berkley, Halifax, Plympton, Wareham, Rochester, Raynham, and Freetown fire departments assisted Middleborough firefighters at the scene, along with the Middleborough Police Department, Coastal EMS, and the Massachusetts Department of Fire Services Special Operations Rehab Unit.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts.
Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW