A fire tore through an assisted living facility in Fall River Sunday night, killing nine residents and sending at least 30 more to area hospitals.
Many of the building’s residents were in wheelchairs or had limited mobility, presenting a daunting and dangerous challenge to first responders rushing to evacuate them. On Monday, some in the Fall River Fire Department said they could have saved more people if the city adequately funded its emergency services.
Fall River Fire Chief Jeffrey Bacon said crews arrived at Gabriel House in response to an automatic fire alarm that was triggered shortly after 9:30 p.m. Sunday.
“There were multiple victims hanging out the windows, screaming and begging for help and to be rescued,” Bacon said. “We knocked down the fire quickly, then all available assets were moved towards rescuing the individuals that needed help.”
Bacon expressed gratitude for all the firefighters, police and EMS who responded to the emergency.
Lorraine Ferrara said she was awakened Sunday night by a banging on the door of her second-floor room.
“And I opened my door and the smoke just hit me. It filled my whole room and the bathroom,” she recalled. “I tried to get out. … I couldn’t get out to the exit door. I couldn’t make it to the door. And it was right there.”
She called for help from her bathroom window, where firefighters were able to reach her and carry her to safety.
Ferrara said two good friends of hers were among the residents who died.
“They both told me every day they loved me. And I told them I loved them,” Ferrara said.
Gov. Maura Healey said the loss of life was tragic, and her condolences go out to the loved ones of those who died. She also expressed gratitude that so many residents survived.
“These are people who were not able to move themselves. They were not mobile themselves. And therefore the work that fire, police and EMS did to get people out was truly amazing,” Healey said.
At another press conference later in the day, several firefighters and union leaders said the city of Fall River failed to adequately staff the fire department, hampering their ability to respond.
International Association of Fire Fighters General President Edward A. Kelly said eight of Fall River’s fire companies have just three firefighters on staff, below the national standard of four. He said there’s “no doubt” that made a difference in their response.
“I don’t think I’m overstating that probably five more people could’ve lived, had those eight firefighters been on scene,” Kelly said.
He added that even though off-duty firefighters later arrived to help, the delayed response meant residents were exposed to smoke for longer than they would have been if more firefighters were at the scene from the start.
“People become unconscious, the CO takes over their bodies,” Kelly said. “And unfortunately, they die if we don’t get to them in time.”
Capt. Frank O’Reagan, one of the off-duty firefighters who came to help, said he arrived on scene about 40 minutes after the call. He recalled seeing firefighters on one side of the building, exhausted from their efforts but continuing to work, but there was an entire section of the building that still needed attention.
“There was just nobody there,” he said. “I couldn’t believe that after all this time, there was still a whole area with people trapped.”
O’Reagan said he got on a ladder to search the third floor even though he had no breathing equipment. He recalled kicking down doors to find bodies, then yelling for help to drag them out.
Father Rob Nemkovich, Fall River police chaplain, spent the morning helping displaced residents who had been relocated to the Timao Center for temporary shelter.
“We got them breakfast. We got them clothing. We’re working on getting records to get medications for the people that need it,” he told GBH News.
He said the residents are “doing as best they can,” and that other groups will aid them in finding longer-term places to stay.
On Monday morning, Kerry Leckey, who moved into the assisted living facility about two months ago, sat on a walker outside the Timao Center, a homeless shelter that was being temporarily used to house residents.
“Nobody left with anything,” Leckey said. “I was lucky to have this, but everybody else’s medication, money, everything is gone, gone, all of it.”
A few belongings have been recovered from residents’ rooms. Michael Pimentel, who uses a wheelchair because he had both legs amputated years ago, clutched the one treasured item he’d been brought: a wooden box containing his mother’s ashes. He said other residents also had similar heirlooms retrieved.
“The firemen got them out of people’s rooms. This is very important to me. Very important to me,” he said.
He said his friends who were lost in the fire are irreplaceable.
The cause of the fire is under investigation, and there’s no word yet on the future of the facility.
The city’s mayor said they’re working on securing new housing for the surviving residents, as well as making sure everyone has access to important medications.
