During the Christmas holiday weekend, two separate fires struck Chelsea, causing significant damage and loss of life. A three-family residence on Bellingham Street went up in flames on Christmas Eve, with firefighters battling the blaze while one of their own required hospitalization, though he was released after treatment. The occupants of that building escaped without injury.
The more tragic incident unfolded on Spruce Street, where a two-alarm fire claimed the life of a young Chelsea resident. Crystal Blanchard was found unconscious by Ladder Two firefighters who ascended the burning staircase to rescue her from the five-unit apartment building at the corner of Spruce and Addison Streets. Emergency responders initiated CPR and transported her to Whidden Memorial Hospital in Everett, where she was pronounced dead. A 33-year-old man who jumped from a second-floor window to escape the flames suffered severe burns and was hospitalized in stable but critical condition. Twelve residents lost their homes and possessions in the Spruce Street fire, which erupted around 11:00 p.m. on Christmas Eve.
The earlier Bellingham Street fire, occurring approximately 18 hours before the fatal Spruce Street blaze, destroyed a wooden multifamily home built around 1909. This three-alarm fire displaced 13 people, though no fatalities resulted. Chelsea Fire officials attributed this fire to an electrical problem located between the first and second floors.
Regarding the Spruce Street incident, police and fire officials suspect the fatal fire was probably caused by a strip of electrical heating covered with clothes that might have caught on fire. Both fires remain under investigation by the Chelsea Fire Department as officials work to determine their precise causes.