2 Firefighters in Search of Homeless People in Blaze Radioed Distress Call

The first two firefighters headed into the burning warehouse to search for homeless people who might be inside. Minutes later, a voice crackled over the radio: “Mayday! Mayday! We’re running out of air.”

Four other firefighters disappeared into the smoke in an attempt to rescue their colleagues.

None returned.

The six Worcester firefighters are believed to have perished in the five-story conflagration that continued to burn Saturday morning.

“It’s three weeks before Christmas. There’s roughly 15 kids out there without fathers,” said District Fire Chief Michael McNamee.

Investigators said the cause of the fire was not immediately known. But Worcester Deputy Fire Chief Gerard Dio called it suspicious, saying firefighters initially were fighting two fires that appeared to have started separately.

Witnesses told firefighters that homeless people often built fires in the windowless rooms of the abandoned cold-storage warehouse to keep warm.

For the firefighters who entered it Friday night, the 80-year-old building became a confusing maze of dark, smoky rooms. There were no windows, which impeded their ability to find their way and trapped the heat inside. Cork insulation added to the smoke.

Ten Roman Catholic priests were among those who rushed to the warehouse, to comfort the firefighters’ families and pray for the missing.

“It was probably one of the worst nights in our priesthood,” said Father Peter Scanlon, the Fire Department’s Catholic chaplain.

Although the firefighters’ names had not been released, Scanlon said two had served as altar boys. One was a lieutenant who had done readings at a firefighters’ memorial Mass.

As the warehouse continued to smolder Saturday, family and friends of the six were escorted to the warehouse. As firefighters continued to douse the hulking frame with water, they dropped off flowers before being bused to a nearby church.

Worcester Fire Chief Dennis Budd said firefighters never found any sign that homeless people had been trapped in the building, although investigators were checking with shelters to see if anyone had been reported missing.

Around midday, two firefighters and a structural engineer entered the building for the first time since the firefighters were lost. A wrecking ball knocked a hole in one wall to give investigators better access to the building’s interior.

Officials said it could be days before the bodies are brought out of the smoldering wreckage of the abandoned warehouse.

“We’re finding some things we didn’t think would be there. There’s more serious floor collapse than we thought. In fact, five of the floors are down on the ground level,” Worcester Deputy Fire Chief Clifton DeCourcy told reporters.

Worcester Mayor Ray Mariano said his city had suffered a tremendous loss.

“They were our brothers, our fathers, our sons and our friends and our protectors,” Mariano said. “They were firefighters, but more importantly, they were members of our family.”