MANCHESTER, NH – A family’s pet dog perished in a fire on Allen Street Saturday afternoon that fire officials say was caused by a faulty portable washing machine.
Fire companies were dispatched to 42 Allen St. at 5:44 p.m.
Engine 2 arrived within minutes and reported heavy fire from the rear of a two-story residential building. This was a single-family residence with two adult occupants and two dogs. Residents told firefighters that all had gotten out of the building with the exception of one dog trapped on the first floor.
Companies initially stretched hose lines through the front of the building for suppression and to aid in the search for the trapped dog with zero visibility and moderate heat. The dog was located and removed from the building by the rescue company. Resuscitation efforts with the help of AMR personnel was not enough to save the dog, which succumbed to the effects of smoke.
All companies performed an aggressive interior attack with multiple hose lines and quickly contained and extinguished the bulk of the fire followed by extensive overhaul and extinguishment.
Crews encountered a large volume of fire with moderate heat and zero visibility on the interior. Sections of the interior living spaces had heavy storage making access and movement difficult. Due to construction practices of building products, there was extensive overhaul to the structure for the purposes of extinguishment of hot spots.
According to Battalion Chief Jonathan Fosher, the fire was caused by the failure of a portable washing machine in the first-floor bathroom.
The fire is classified as accidental.
