State trooper rescued man from fire in Middleboro veterans home

MIDDLEBORO — A Massachusetts State Police trooper rescued a seriously injured man from a third-floor window of a veterans' home that caught fire in Middleboro on Tuesday, officials said.

The Middleboro Fire Department responded to a house fire at the Acorn Hill Home at 285 West Grove St. about 1:12 a.m. on Tuesday.

Fire Chief Lance Benjamino said first responders found heavy fire showing from the upper two stories of the home when they arrived.

A State Police trooper, John Hagerty, was the first person to arrive on scene. He was passing by the home when he discovered the fire and used a ground ladder to rescue a seriously injured man from the third floor, officials said.

Hagerty was also injured during the rescue and taken to a local hospital for treatment, including for smoke inhalation.

The man who was injured as a result of the fire was also hospitalized. Benjamino didn't have an update on his condition as of Wednesday morning.

Benjamino said crews "mounted an aggressive exterior fire attack" then went inside to finish extinguishing the fire. It took about 45 minutes for crews to get the fire under control.

The other 12 residents who live in the house were able to evacuate on their own, officials said. Two of those residents were evaluated on scene, but declined to be taken to the hospital.

Benjamino said the home is considered a total loss due to heavy fire and smoke damage, meaning 13 residents were displaced. They are being assisted by the American Red Cross.

State Fire Marshal Peter J. Ostroskey and Benjamino said in a written statement that the fire was caused by an unattended candle in a second-floor bedroom.

"As we saw here, the flame from one small candle can cause a fire that destroys a home," Benjamino said. "Given the early hour, we’re very lucky more people weren’t injured or worse. Always exercise caution with candles, and never leave a burning candle unattended."

Middleboro firefighters received mutual aid assistance at the scene from the Lakeville, Raynham and Carver fire departments. Wareham firefighters provided station coverage during the incident.

Enterprise senior reporter Cody Shepard can be reached by email at cshepard@enterprisenews.com. You can follow him on Twitter at @cshepard_ENT. Support local journalism by purchasing a digital or print subscription to The Enterprise today.

This article originally appeared on The Enterprise: 13 displaced after fire causes candle in Middleboro veterans' home