Fire and an explosion destroyed a historic home in Fall River's Highlands neighborhood

FALL RIVER — A historic house in the city's Highlands neighborhood is likely a total loss after an explosion and a three-alarm blaze broke out Sunday afternoon.

Fire Chief Roger St. Martin said Sunday that the call came in at 5:10 p.m.; engines arrived three minutes later at 528 High St. to find the house and vehicles parked in the driveway engulfed in flames. Heavy black smoke from the fire was visible throughout the neighborhood.

Reports from throughout the neighborhood reveal there was at least one explosion. Visible on the scene was scattered debris that apparently came from a truck and a car that exploded in the driveway.

The explosion and heat from the fire were enough to blow out windows on the house next door, at 544 High St.

St. Martin said eight people were evacuated. One was injured on the way out, and another was treated for smoke inhalation, he said.

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He said flames were heaviest on the north side of the building, with the carport fully involved.

Flames spread throughout the house from the basement to the roof — according to radio reports, firefighters had to cut holes in the roof to gain access to the fire and chase the flames for well over an hour.

Fire at 528 High St. Sunday.
Fire at 528 High St. Sunday.

The building, St. Martin said, is "a probable total loss," with an estimated $400,000 in damage.

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The neighbors' house at 544 High sustained the broken windows, he said, and fire damage as flames spread to its eaves. St. Martin said firefighters were able to contain that to minor damage.

Fighting the fire was made more challenging because a hydrant on Maple Street, just outside the Fall River Historical Society, was non-operational, St. Martin said, causing crews to adjust until they could gain access to more water.

Fire at 528 High St. Sunday.
Fire at 528 High St. Sunday.

St. Martin said the cause is still under investigation.

District Chief Matthew Johnson was the incident commander on scene, St. Martin said, with five engines, two ladder trucks and a heavy rescue vehicle responding.

Fire at 528 High St. Sunday.
Fire at 528 High St. Sunday.

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Home has a historic past

Property records indicate the house is a single-family home owned by Robert and Carol Lapointe, who have owned it since 1979.

The fire occurred in a neighborhood full of historic properties, part of the 40C Highlands Local Historic District, and the home has its own history. In 2015, the house was named in a local ordinance to be preserved.

It was built in 1890 for Alfred Butterworth, a traveling salesman for the Hargraves Soap Co. and a member of the Masonic Hall and Butchers Rendering Association. Butterworth became ill in the winter of 1892 and, when he did not recover, he hanged himself from a tree on Elsbree Lane on April 14, 1892. A little over a year later, in July 1893, when Lizzie and Emma Borden were looking to move out of their Second Street home after the grisly murders of their father and stepmother, they nearly bought this home. Instead, they settled in Maplecroft on French Street, about two blocks north.

Dan Medeiros can be reached at dmedeiros@heraldnews.com. Support local journalism by purchasing a digital or print subscription to The Herald News today.

This article originally appeared on The Herald News: Fall River historic Highlands home destroyed in fire, explosion