DANVERS - Two bodies were pulled yesterday from the scene of a two-alarm house fire in Danvers,fire officials said.
The blaze broke out in the two-unit house on Lawrence Street about 2:30 p.m., and the victims, one male and one female, were found in the second-floor unit, said Captain Jim McPherson of the Danvers Fire Department.
Fire officials estimated that the victims were in their 50s or 60s. The victims' names were withheld last night pending notification of their families, fire officials said.
Fire Chief James Tutko said the fire was mostly out by 7 p.m.
Deputy Fire Chief Kevin Farrell said the fire was not suspicious.
One fire official reported that the fire was believed to have started in the basement, but Tutko said they had not yet determined where the blaze started or the cause.
Five engines, two ladder trucks, and 20 to 25 firefighters responded to the scene, he said. Fire units from five neighboring towns - Peabody, Salem, Beverly, Middleton, and Topsfield - assisted at the scene or by covering Danvers Fire Department headquarters, Tutko said.
State fire marshals were assisting in the investigation, Tutko said.
"It was a very smoky fire," he said.
The lone occupant of the first-floor unit, a man, was not home at the time of the fire, and the Red Cross arranged for him to stay in a hotel last night, officials said.
Deputy Fire Chief Kevin Farrell said the building was a "total loss" and estimated it was worth about $300,000.
"The crews that were working today made a valiant effort," Farrell said.
The shell of the structure was standing last night, and from the front, it was difficult to see the extent of the damage.
But on one side of the house, firefighters had cut a long strip through the center of the building, exposing the badly damaged interior.
Peter St. Claire, who lives next door to the destroyed home, said there were still flames coming out of the roof when he arrived home about 3:15 p.m. yesterday.
"It was about two hours later when I noticed them bring the first bodies out," St. Claire said. "That's when we realized how tragic it was. It wasn't just a regular house fire at that point."
St. Claire said he did not know the victims.
Josh Saul, who lives three houses away, said the victims had moved in sometime after Labor Day. Saul said the scene of the fire was "surreal."
"There were kids sledding down the road; the beauty parlor never closed," he said, referring to a business two doors away.
"I could see smoke from Town Hall, which is up a ways," he said. "It was billowing out of the roof."
"We were just in awe," said another neighbor, Jason Marshall. "We've never seen anything like that in this neighborhood."
"It was amazing how much smoke was coming out of the house," said Paul Adrien, who also lives on the street. He said he did not know the victims.
"Everyone was watching and just hoping no one was inside," he said.
On Nov. 22, 2006, in Danvers, a chemical explosion at an ink and paint factory destroyed or damaged about 100 homes and businesses.
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