Pet Cat Perishes In Nashua Home Fire

NASHUA, NH — The Nashua Fire Department is reminding homeowners and tenants in the city to make sure that smoke detectors are installed in your residences after a home fire on June Street last night. Fire and rescue teams were called to 33 June St. at just before 9:30 p.m. on May 5, 2019, after one of the residents of the single-family home woke up after smelling an odor of smoke in the building. The occupant investigated where the smell was coming from and discovered a fire in the rear section of the home, according to Deputy Chief Karl Gerhard of the Nashua Fire Department.

“(The teams) rapidly attacked and contained the fire to the kitchen and dining rooms,” he noted. “The fire had extended to the attic area above these rooms and the crews quickly pulled the ceilings down to access this space and fully extinguished the fire.”

The fire was contained in about 14 minutes.

Firefighters searched the building for two pets – a dog and a cat. At first, it was believed that the dog escaped from the building. It was located later, unharmed, in another section of the home, and reunited with the residents. The cat, however, was located deceased inside the home, according to Gerhard.

One firefighter suffered a hand injury and was taken to Southern New Hampshire Medical Center for treatment. He is expected to be back on the job in seven to 10 days.

While the fire investigation is not completed, Gerhard noted that there were no fire detectors in the home.

“Every home needs smoke detectors installed,” he said in a press statement. “One on every floor and inside each bedroom.”