'Heroic Effort,' Woman Dies After Firefighters Pull Her From Burning Cambridge Home
CAMBRIDGE (CBS) - A woman died and three firefighters were hurt in a fire at a home in Cambridge early Wednesday morning.
Cambridge Fire Chief Gerry Mahoney said a neighbor called 911 after flames broke out in the single-family home on Buckingham Street around 5:20 a.m.
He said firefighters made a "heroic effort" to get a woman inside.
"Upon searching the building they found an occupant unconscious on the second floor. That victim was removed and transported to an area hospital. They were in cardiac arrest at the time," Mahoney told reporters.
The woman, who has not been identified, died at the hospital. The chief said she was in her 60's or 70's and was the only one in the house at the time of the fire.
"We have also had three firefighters transported to area hospitals due to an assortment of injuries," Mahoney said, noting that a section of ceiling collapsed onto one firefighter, another had a leg injury and the third hurt a shoulder. All three were treated and released.
Mahoney said firefighters had a hard time getting to the house because the yard was overgrown and there was a car in the driveway.
There's no word yet on how the fire started or a damage estimate. The chief said he did not think the home was a total loss.