MANCHESTER, NH – No one was injured in a tent fire at a homeless camp located under the bridge near Canal Street last night, according to the Manchester Fire Department, but authorities are still investigating the cause of the fire.
Manchester Deputy Fire Marshal Mitch Cady told Manchester Ink Link Thursday that the late-night fire was already fully involved when the fire department arrived soon after they got the call at 10:20 p.m. Wednesday.
He did not see what the tent structure looked like before the fire, which apparently involved tarps and other makeshift materials, but it was said to be one large tent.
Within, fire investigators found a number of portable propane heaters and cooking appliances. Any one of those, or potentially smoking materials, could have been responsible for starting the fire, Cady said.
Rumors that have spread to social media about people throwing fireworks into the tent or dropping them into the camp from the bridge do not appear to be substantiated by the facts so far.
“At this time we have no reason to believe there were fireworks that were involved with it whatsoever,” Cady said.
He said Manchester Police searched the area with a K9 unit trained to sniff out explosives and fireworks.
“We ran the dog over the area, the dog probably worked for over half an hour,” Cady said. “There was no indication or alerts that there was any sort of explosive residue in the area.”
Below: Video footage captured by a reader of Manchester Information Facebook page and shared here with permission.
Cady said it’s likely people heard loud pops or bangs which sounded like fireworks, but were more likely any pressure vessels inside the tent that may have exploded from the heat.
Crews found one or two 1-pound propane canisters that were ruptured. But they don’t know if one of those explosions started the fire or if they happened as a result of the fire.
Investigators are still trying to contact the person who is alleged to be the owner of the tent, but they were absent by the time fire crews arrived, Cady said. It’s unknown if anyone was inside the tent when the fire began.
Crews brought the fire under control quickly by about 10:38 p.m. and it did not spread to any other parts of the camp.
Cady cautioned users of portable propane heaters to be vigilant and follow manufacturer safety recommendations.
Manchester Fire Prevention staff estimate this is the third fire at a homeless camp the department has responded to so far this winter.
