3-alarm fire flattens building in Goffstown

GOFFSTOWN, N.H. — A fire at a vacant property in Goffstown, New Hampshire, leveled the building and evacuated a nearby restaurant on Sunday afternoon.

The New Hampshire State Fire Marshal is investigating the cause of the fire at 711 Mast Rd., but Goffstown Fire Chief Richard O'Brien said there were no current utilities at the property and no one was at the building when the fire started.

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Several fire crews assisted Goffstown firefighters as they simultaneously worked to put out small fires that sparked on roofs as embers fell on homes up to two blocks away, O'Brien said. Police helped close down several blocks of the neighborhood and divert traffic

Winnie Zeng, owner of North Garden Chinese Restaurant, which is next door, said staff and customers smelled the fire before seeing the flames. The extreme heat melted the siding of the restaurant but caused no interior damage.

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"We saw suddenly an explosion," Zeng said. "Then we came out, saw the smoke come out of the building."

An employee of the restaurant, who is also a part-time firefighter, urged customers to evacuate.

Eversource workers rushed to an adjacent power station to control any electrical hazards. Power was cut at the restaurant.

The building has been vacant for at least a couple years and has had multiple additions, officials and neighbors said, serving at times as a sign shop, an auto body shop and office space.

"With a history like that, there's a lot of areas that can be prone to firefighters getting lost or rapid fire spread," O'Brien said. "We did experience some minor explosions at the time of the fire, but fortunately nobody was injured."

Stebbins Commercial Properties announced on its website the August 2014 sale of the 27,000-square-foot property to O'Reilly Enterprises for the future development of an O'Reilly VIP Auto or Pep Boys.

Cox Media Group