CUMMINGTON — A house fire on Christmas day was extinguished thanks in part to a water line getting ruptured.
“The homeowner is very, very lucky,” said Fire Chief Adam Dragon.
Dragon said the fire occurred at a house on Trouble Street, and the owner had been away the night before. The department was called to the scene late Christmas morning.
“He had come home to a house full of smoke,” said Dragon. “There was a hole burned through the floor.”
The chief said the fire burned so hot that it ruptured a water line, which extinguished much of the fire in the house.
Dragon said that when firefighters got to the scene they extinguished a few hot spots. He said Plainfield, Worthington and Ashfield fire departments provided mutual aid, as well as Highland Ambulance.
“We appreciate our mutual aid coming to us on an icy Christmas Day,” Dragon said. “We’re thankful that they all came out.”
David Alvord, Plainfield’s fire chief, said the area has been dealing with bad ice, and he praised the work that the highway departments of Plainfield and Cummington did in making the roads safe for firetrucks to drive on Christmas Day.
“They did a great job,” he said.
Dragon also praised the work of the Cummington Highway Department, which allowed the fire department to access the house through bad road conditions.
Dragon said that a damage figure for what the house sustained is not yet available, but that the house is not a total loss. He also said that the cause of the blaze remains under investigation.
Bera Dunau can be reached at bdunau@gazettenet.com.