(Athol, MA) Update – A three alarm house fire at 92 Fern Street in Athol on the morning of September 7th resulted in the death of one woman, now identified as Jacqueline Doherty, 62. The fire was started by a gas kitchen stove when a knob was left slightly on. It took about forty firefighters over an hour to put the fire out Thursday morning with 12 area departments providing mutual aid. In addition to the fatality, one person was brought to the hospital and is on their way to recovering. Athol Fire Chief Guarnera expressed sympathies to the Doherty family and noted that “about 80% of residential fires in Massachusetts start with cooking equipment.”
—
One woman died in a three alarm house fire at 92 Fern Street in Athol Thursday, her name has not yet been released. According to the Athol Fire Department, the cause of the fire is still under investigation but it is believed that the fire started in the kitchen of the single-family, two-story home. The Gardner Fire Department noted there was heavy fire throughout the house when crews arrived on scene around 10 a.m. Thursday morning. It took approximately 40 firefighters an hour to put the fire out.