Fire guts Somerville businesses

By Alexander C. Kaufman, Globe Correspondent

A three-alarm fire ripped through several businesses in Teele Square in Somerville Saturday night, as dozens of firefighters battled the blaze for six hours in the snow and slush, fire officials said.

The fire started about 10:50 p.m. and charred about four businesses, including a dry cleaner, a nail salon, and a Chinese restaurant, in a multi-tenant building on Broadway, said Somerville Deputy Fire Chief William Lee. No one was injured.

Much of the structure was gutted by fire and a building inspector will determine whether to level the burned edifice.

“At least some of the building has to be taken down,” Lee said in a brief telephone interview.

He said firefighters are investigating what caused the blaze.

A similar fire tore through that building in the early 1990s, Lee said. However he said, there has not been a blaze in that area of Teele Square in recent memory.

In the aftermath of the fire, Rudy’s Café, a nearby eatery, stayed closed this morning, according to a prerecorded message on its answering machine.

“Our neighbors had an extensive fire next door and we are closed for lunch for sure,” the message said. “We hope to be open later this evening.”