Fire swept through a three-family home in Lawrence on Saturday afternoon, severely damaging it and leaving several people unable to return home for the night, fire officials said.

According to Lawrence Acting Fire Chief Brian Murphy, the fire broke out at 5:30 p.m. on the third floor of the home at 34 Salem St. Firefighters were able to knock the flames down quickly, but the damaged was estimated at about $50,000.

Three families were put out, and the Red Cross was on scene assisting them last night, Murphy said.

The fire was kept to a small single-alarm, but it still required every firefighter in the city to respond, as half of the Lawrence fire houses have been closed down due to budget cuts. One fire truck had to leave the scene during the mop-up phase to respond to a fire alarm sounding elsewhere in Lawrence.

Only 15 firefighters were on duty at the time, which is fewer firefighters working at any given moment than many small towns in Massachusetts, including Brookline and neighboring North Andover, which frequently sends mutual aid trucks into Lawrence during fires.

The victim in the fatal Thanksgiving fire in Peterborough, N.H. has been identified as Patricia C. Rennie, 47, said New Hampshire State Fire Marshal J. William Degnan, Peterborough Fire Chief Joseph Lenox, and Peterborough Police Chief Scott Guinard in a statement Thursday.

The positive identification was made by New Hampshire Chief State Medical Examiner Dr. Thomas Andrew.

The fire remains under investigation.

A large, 4-alarm fire badly burned two multifamily homes in Worcester and spread to a third before crews could contain it.

The fire broke out at around 12:45 p.m. Firefighters were ordered to evacuate the original fire building at 5 Forbes St. around 1 p.m. after threat of a possible collapse and have re-entered and exited twice since them.

After a flurry of radio traffic, the city’s South End fire chief took command and ordered a roll call of all firefighters. Shortly after that, the on-duty deputy fire chief took command and ordered a third alarm response.

The fire quickly spread to the second building. Fire chiefs directed firefighters at each, in an attempt to contain the blaze. Around 1:15 p.m., the fire spread to a third building, a block away, on Orne Street, leading the chief to strike the fourth alarm. That fire was quickly contained and considered minor.

Around 1:20, the rear portion of the roof collapsed in the original fire building, and a ladder on a fire truck began to catch fire from the heat.

Heavy wind conditions appear to have helped the fire spread.

There were no reports of injuries.

ScanNewEngland.net reports the original fire was in a 3-story wood frame building.

From WFXT-TV news helicopter video, it looks like the fire was in a dense cluster of homes. There appear to be several large homes and other buildings huddled close together.

A fire crew from neighboring Auburn covered parts of Worcester for other emergency calls.

The fire burned about a half mile north of UMass Memorial Medical Center, and about two blocks east of I-290.

NEW HAVEN — A Waterbury, Conn. firefighter has died after suffering a massive heart attack hours after his shift ended Tuesday.

Lieutenant Bruce Bachinsky, of Waterbury’s Engine 8, fell ill a few hours after coming home from his shift. In the fire service, his passing is considered a death in the line of duty.

Bachinsky was a 12-year department veteran. Arrangements are pending.

Thanks to a locally built Ribcraft 9.0 rescue dive boat, the Boston Fire Department can now more quickly respond to water search and rescue missions.

The 30-foot-long $214,000 boat, which was funded by the Department of Homeland Security, can carry 10 divers plus crew and can reach over 50 mph.

“This boat is specifically designed to support the dive team when responding to on-water rescue situations,” said Boston Fire Commissioner Roderick Fraser. “Its speed and maneuverability are unparalleled and will greatly enhance our response capability.”

Steve Murphy, divemaster, Marine pilot-firefighter, and head of the Rescue Dive Team, said that the team was “able to be part of the design process. Our divers have years of experience and used it to have a boat built to meet our needs. With water incidents, minutes count. This boat will allow us to arrive on scene in a quick and safe manner.”

The boat, referred to as Marine Unit 3, will be docked in the North End at Burroughs Wharf. The boat is named after the late Captain John F. Kenney, who was a member of the Rescue Dive Team and a 29-year veteran of the Boston Fire Department.

The East Dover, Vt. Fire Rescue Department fire truck that was reported stolen from the firehouse on Tuesday was found abandoned in a parking lot in the New York capital of Albany, according to officials.

The medium-duty 2005 Ford designated East Dover Rescue 4 was discovered missing after firefighters returned from helping a neighboring town fight a fire.

The rescue truck was found with the keys in the ignition, according to FireFighterCloseCalls.com. The truck was not damaged, and the rescue/medical equipment was still inside.

Vermont State Police went to Albany early Thursday morning to continue the investigation there. The truck was on its way back to Easy Dover.

Firefighters in the small southern Vermont community of East Dover returned from battling an early morning blaze on Tuesday to find one of their fire tucks had been stolen.

A medium duty rescue truck designated East Dover Rescue 4 was parked at the firehouse. The firefighters took other apparatus to nearby Williamsville at 3 a.m. to battle a fire there. They returned at about 5:30, and the truck was gone.

The truck was build in 2005. It’s pretty conspicuous. It’s red with emergency lights and the words “East Dover Fire Rescue” in big letters on the sides.

Theft from firehouses is a particularly despicable but all too common crime. Perhaps nearly as valuable as the truck are the medical supplies and expensive rescue tools located within.

If you see the truck or have any information, please contact Southwestern New Hampshire Fire District Mutual Aid at 866-352-1291 or the Dover, Vt. police department at 802-464-2020.

(Media credit/KFMB-TV)

SAN DIEGO — A San Diego Fire-Rescue Department ladder truck got stuck in a roadway trench while returning from a medical call Monday night, according to FireFighterCloseCalls.com.

KFMB-TV reported the truck, designated Engine 10, drove over a steel plate covering an open trench near the 6300 block of Alvarado Road near Alvarado Hospital at about 11:30 p.m. Monday. The 70,000 pound truck was too heavy for the plate, and it gave way, trapping the truck by the rear wheels.

Fire firefighters were in the truck when the accident occurred. No one was hurt. The truck was freed about an hour later, KFMB reported.

The department said there was damage to the truck’s exhaust system. The truck was taken out of service for repairs.

Police are investigating to see if the wrong type of metal plate was used to cover the trench.

They look like props out of an alien-invasion movie, but they could help the Boston Fire Department save your pet’s life.

Sixty pet oxygen masks were donated to the Boston Fire Department today by WellPet, a natural pet food company, and the Massachusetts Veterinary Medical Association Charities.

“The Fire Department does an outstanding job protecting the residents of Boston,” said Mayor Thomas M. Menino. “These mask kits will give them the tool they need to protect our pets, which are also a part of many Boston families.”

This donation was part of a larger goal set by the Massachusetts Veterinary Medical Association Charities to supply every town in the state with at least one such mask. The organization has already donated these masks to over 130 fire departments in the state.

Police in Lowell got thrown for a loop Wednesday night after their neighbors to the north, the Pelham, N.H. police department, called to report a 1984 Chevy Impala with Lowell Fire Department markings and a Massachusetts fire license plate was being driven erratically around an auto shop’s lot.

Lowell Police reacted, putting out a “be on the lookout for” notice, and rumors started that a fire department car had been stolen. It turned out, however, that the fire department had sent the old, decommissioned fire car to the auto shop to be painted for possible loaner use in a movie being filmed in the area, according to a Lowell police officer.

Apparently, the auto shop decided to have some fun with the car and took it for a spin around their lot, catching the eyes of the local cops.

No charges were filed, but a police source said the fire department will take their paint business elsewhere.