MANCHESTER, NH – A smoldering campfire inside an unoccupied house brought firefighters to Myrtle Street Thursday morning.
At 11:45 a.m. calls came in for smoke visible from the rear of 27 Myrtle St. Arriving crews confirmed there was a fire in the single-family home and Battalion Chief Jon Fosher called for a working fire bringing additional apparatus and personnel to the scene.
Firefighters faced doors and windows that had plywood bolted from the inside of the building, and could not immediately gain access. Saws were used to cut through the plywood in the front and rear of the building to get access to what appeared to be an unoccupied building.
Smoke was visible from second floor at the rear of the structure. Fire was found in the front room of first floor contained to a makeshift burn area described as an “active campfire” on the floor of one of the first-floor rooms. The fire was quickly extinguished and plywood was removed from the windows to allow smoke to be removed from the building.
Manchester Fire Chief Ryan Cashin said that authorities had not been notified the building was unoccupied and asked for people to notify the Manchester Fire Marshals Office at 603-669-2256 of any unoccupied residences. Chief Cashin said firefighters always search buildings for people even when abandoned, but being aware of the status of the property allows them to be aware of possible structural integrity issues.
It appears although the building was boarded up, people have found ways into the building and there were signs of people staying in the house.
The fire is being investigated by the Manchester Marshal’s Office, and Manchester Police.
