Passersby alert Dorchester residents to fire

(Mark Wilson/Globe Staff)

By John R. Ellement, Globe Staff

Drivers beeping horns and screaming neighbors alerted residents of a Dorchester three-decker today that a fire had erupted in the basement and was quickly flowing up the exterior of the house.

"Everybody outside [was] shouting, ‘Fire! Fire!’” said first-floor resident Dorothy Belcarris. “People were out there honking horns.’’

Belcarris and her son, Orlando, realized the building was on fire after hearing the noise and seeing smoke flowing into their apartment.

“People are good,” said Belcarris, how escaped out the front door. “I didn’t have time to do anything. I just got out and left.’’

No one was injured in the blaze on Milton Avenue. At least four residents had to run out of the building when the fire started.

Deputy Chief Joseph Fleming, who directed firefighting efforts, said that the flames started in the basement, extended into the walls, and spread onto the exterior of the red-shingled apartment house. The cause of the 9 a.m. fire remains under investigation.

Fleming said windows in the basement apartment were not large enough to qualify as emergency escape routes as required by the state building code. He said the fire department will notify city building inspectors about the issue.

Fleming estimated damage at $400,000. The American Red Cross was helping 10 people who were displaced by the fire.

Evette Sewell and her boyfriend, Troy Rose, were sleeping late in their third-floor apartment when they were awoken by the sounds of shouts. The couple managed to escape the building by ducking beneath the black smoke that had filled their apartment and the hallway.

Firefighters had to go in and rescue Baby, one of the couple's two cats. The other tabby has not been seen since the fire.

“We are all still here,’’ Sewell said. “We are blessed.’’

(Mark Wilson/Globe Staff)

Troy Rose clung to Baby after firefighters rescued the cat from a fire on Milton Avenue.

• Comment
• Permalink
• Email