Monday morning brought unprecedented chaos to Chelsea’s fire department when a tornado swept through the area. The emergency calls that flooded in were unlike anything firefighters had encountered before in this frequently busy city.
Engine 1 and Engine 2 were dispatched to the Mill Hill area for trees down, while Engine 3 and Ladder 2 headed to Spencer Avenue at 9:48 a.m. to handle a downed telephone pole in front of the French Club with energized power lines creating a hazard. The crews cordoned off the area and called NStar to the scene.
During operations on Spencer Avenue, Capt. McGarry observed severe structural damage at 60 Dudley St. and immediately directed Engine 3’s crew to assess it. He alerted dispatch that the destruction appeared consistent with a microburst and called for additional resources.
Acting Deputy Chief Paul Giancola arrived and took command as Tower Ladder 1 also responded to assist. Extensive damage was evident on the 2nd and 3rd floors of 60 Dudley St. Firefighters conducted a thorough damage assessment and forced their way into several units to ensure all residents were safe and accounted for.
No injuries or trapped occupants were found.
Giancola ordered a portion of Webster Avenue closed because two large window air conditioning units hung precariously from the building. When Tower 1 inspected the roof, they discovered all rooftop air conditioning equipment had been torn loose and scattered across different roof sections. All power to the rooftop systems was cut off pending repairs by the property owners.
Firefighters remained at the scene until the window units were safely removed and the public was no longer at risk.
Chelsea fire personnel also went to Revere to assist with the massive emergency situation unfolding there throughout the morning and afternoon.
City Manager Jay Ash reported that the City DPW dispatched a crew to help with cleanup operations. The five DPW workers brought a front-end loader, chipper, dump truck and multiple chain-saws to assist in the recovery effort.
“fblikebutton_button” “I feel better getting blizzards and not tornados,” City Manager Jay Ash said.