NORTHBOROUGH, Mass. — A "large structure fire" broke out in the center of Northborough on Saturday, police say.
The fire, at the former R&T Furniture building, shut down the center of town in the area.
Northborough Police posted on Facebook after the fire, telling residents to avoid the Route 20 area from Hudson Street to Lincoln Street.
One firefighter was transported to Marlborough Hospital for heat related issues.
The heat and humidity made it harder to deal with the fire, an issue that required several firefighters to help respond to the scene.
David Parenti, the Northborough Fire Chief told Boston 25 News that his unit, along with several other area departments responded to the fire on West Main Street.
Firefighters knew the building was empty, so they fought the flames from the outside.
Ultimately, the roof collapsed down on top of the building and a wall fell down on three cars that had been parked right outside the building.
"We knew building was vacant, we weren't going to put anyone inside the building if we didn't have to, there was just Way too much fire at the time to put anyone in the building," said Fire Chief Parenti.
Fire Chief Parenti credited his crews with doing a great job containing the flames and not damaging a nearby building.
He said the building had been vacant for the last five years, where the owner had been taking people in on an appointment-type basis. Crews had to bring in an excavator to dig through the rubble to determine what caused the fire. The State Fire Marshal's office also brought in a drone to get an overhead view.
The department put out an update later in the night, saying traffic opened up. Fire and police personnel remained on scene after the clearing.
Cox Media Group
