Cold Storage Fire 20th Anniversary Marked By Exhibit, Documentary

WORCESTER, MA — An already painful anniversary for Worcester firefighters will carry extra significance this year. Not only is it the 20th anniversary of the cold storage warehouse fire, but the date falls three weeks after the department's latest line-of-duty death.

Twenty years ago, six Worcester firefighters — Joseph McGuirk, James Lyons III, Jeremiah Lucey, Paul Brotherton, Lt. Thomas Spencer, and Timothy Jackson — died when they became trapped in the abandoned 93-year-old cold storage warehouse at 266 Franklin St. The fire started after two people living in the building knocked over a candle.

But the whole story of the fire and its aftermath is much more detailed. For the 20th anniversary, the Worcester Historical Fire Society has set up an exhibit on the fire at Union Station detailing what happened. The exhibit is open to the public through Dec. 4.

The Leary Firefighters Foundation — a nonprofit founded by comic Dennis Leary — will also debut a five-part documentary called "The Worcester 6: Heroes Remembered" on Tuesday. Leary knew two of the firefighters who died in the warehouse.

Worcester's memorial ceremony will take place on Dec. 3 at the Franklin Street Fire Station, which was built on the site of the warehouse after it was torn down.

This Dec. 4, 1999 file photo shows firefighters spraying water onto the general-alarm fire scene at the Worcester Cold Storage and Warehouse Co. in Worcester, Mass., where six Worcester firefighters lost their lives. (AP Photo/Paul Connors, File)

Members of the Worcester Fire Department stand at attention at the fire-destroyed Worcester Cold Storage and Warehouse Dec. 10, 1999, during a minute of silence at 6:13 p.m., one week to the minute that a fire alarm summoned the firefighters to the vacant warehouse. (AP Photo/Jim Rogash)