Fierce flames engulf Lynn 2-family home

LYNN, Mass. (WHDH) -- A child playing with a lighter on a couch started a large fire at a two-family home in Lynn on Tuesday.

The family tried to put out the fire, but couldn’t. Smoke and flames shot through the roof of a 2.5-story home in Lynn.

“I was at work and I was told that my neighbor’s house was on fire. I had to leave work and I came home and this is what I saw,” said Julian Brown, a neighbor.

Investigators said the three-alarm fire quickly spread up through the house and the cold weather only made their jobs more difficult.

“Initially the guys are always fight with the cold. We’re watching for slip injuries and equipment freezing up. It’s always a problem in these kind of conditions,” said Lynn District Fire Chief Stephen Archer.

Two families lived in the home -- nine people made it our safely, in part due to an off-duty Lynn firefighter. Three children also live in the home. They were at school at the time of the fire.

“We had an off-duty firefighter who happened to be on scene here when we arrived. He helped to get some of the people out of the building,” said Archer.

“My girlfriend called me and said the house was on fire. I happened to be right around another property that I own and this is what we came home to,” said homeowner Phil Brienza.

The Red Cross is helping both families find a place to stay.

Two dogs were rescued, but one is unaccounted for. A Lynn firefighter hurt his shoulder, but otherwise no one was injured.