A house trailer located at 386 Park Avenue was completely destroyed Saturday evening. Officials say a faulty electrical outlet is to blame.
According to Capt. Mike O'Brien, the department received multiple 911 calls about the blaze starting around 5:58 p.m. Reported locations varied — flames could be seen a few streets over — but all seemed to be in the area of Riverside Street and Park Avenue.
Companies arrived to find a manufactured home consumed by fire, with fire venting to the exterior in several locations. Witnesses reported they were not sure if anyone was inside.
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Due to these conditions, a second alarm was ordered, causing a Tiverton engine to be sent to the scene and a Bristol engine sent to the station for coverage, O'Brien said.
Despite the heavy fire, crews from Portsmouth Engine 3 and the Tower Ladder made an aggressive attack on the fire while simultaneously conducting a search for possible victims.
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As fire crews battled the fire, traffic on Park Avenue became congested and came to a stop, eventually forcing many motorists to simply turn around.
The fire was extinguished and no victims were found.
An investigation was conducted by members of Portsmouth Fire Department, with assistance from the State Fire Marshal’s Office. The investigation indicated the fire was caused by a faulty electrical outlet. No one was home at the time of the fire, O'Brien said. The fire seems to have burned for some time prior to being detected.
Editor's note: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated the start of the fire. Calls were reported around 5:58 p.m.
