ATHOL — A man was displaced from his home on Lombard Avenue after his back porch was set ablaze Monday afternoon.
According to Deputy Fire Chief Eric Jack, the fire is believed to have started from flammable materials igniting after being removed from a wood stove at 41 Lombard Ave.
No one was injured. The homeowner, who initially reported the fire, declined to comment.
While firefighters contained the blaze to the rear portion of the house, Jack said it caused significant damage to the back porch and melted vinyl siding from the property’s garage.
“It started on the back corner of this porch here,” Jack said. “Flames extended to this bathroom area here in the back of the house. We kept it from the main part of the house.”
Firefighters from Athol, Orange and Phillipston responded shortly after 2 p.m. alongside Athol Police and State Police. Jack said the fire left “repairable damage” to the single-family home, which is believed to be occupied solely by its owner, and was not a total loss.
“[The homeowner] is going to do some repairs to this area before he can move back in,” Jack said. “We have some water damage and a little bit of smoke damage on the first floor.”
Jack warned the public to be careful where they place materials removed from wood stoves.
“We think this resulted from cleaning the wood stove,” he said. “We ask the public to please be careful with the disposal of ashes and products from a wood stove near combustibles.”