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- 'A tragedy': 9 killed in fire at senior living facility in Massachusetts</p>
<p>Julia Gomez, Linda Murphy and Christopher Cann, USA TODAY July 14, 2025 at 5:52 PM</p>
<p>FALL RIVER, MA – A blaze at an assisted living facility in Massachusetts killed at least nine people and injured over 30 others after it trapped residents inside, forcing first responders to kick down doors and pull screaming people out through windows.</p>
<p>Firefighters responded Sunday around 9:50 p.m. to Gabriel House Assisted Living Facility in Fall River, about 50 miles south of Boston. Upon arrival, they saw the front of the building engulfed in flames and smoke, and began rescuing people while trying to quell the blaze.</p>
<p>Multiple people were declared dead at the scene while over 30 were rushed to area hospitals, including at least five firefighters with minor injuries. As of Monday morning, nine people were dead and one person was in critical condition, said Fall River Fire Chief Jeffrey Bacon. Approximately 70 people were living in the building when the fire broke out.</p>
<p>Bacon described the chaotic scene that saw residents begging for help and "hanging out of windows looking to be rescued." He said firefighters and police pulled dozens of people to safety, squeezing them through small windows or breaking down doors and carrying residents – some of whom were in wheelchairs – out of the building.</p>
<p>The cause of the incident remains unclear and is under investigation. Officials said the building owner has been cooperative and the facility will soon be boarded up.</p>
<p>"The fire at Gabriel House in Fall River is a tragedy," said Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey in a statement. "My heart goes out to those who are waking up to the most horrific news imaginable about their loved ones this morning."</p>
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<p>What we know about possible cause of deadly Fall River fire</p>
<p>While inspectors worked to pinpoint what led to the fire, officials have begun describing potential hazards in the building when the blaze broke out.</p>
<p>At a news conference, Bacon noted the presence of "several" oxygen tanks, which are commonly used by elderly residents and can be fire hazards. However, the chief said they were "irrelevant to the fire at this time" and cited an ongoing investigation headed by the Massachusetts Department of Fire Services.</p>
<p>What is Gabriel House in Fall River?</p>
<p>The Gabriel House assisted living facility opened in 1999 and is made up of 100 units, according to the Massachusetts Executive Office of Aging & Independence.</p>
<p>Gabriel House's website says is meant for people 55 and older, and that it provides a range of care for residents with diseases such as diabetes or those who struggle to control their bodily functions.</p>
<p>It remains unknown if Gabriel House had and followed an evacuation plan. The building's owner Dennis Etzkorn has not responded to multiple requests for comment from the Herald News, part of the USA TODAY Network. Fall River Mayor Paul Coogan said Gabriel House – like all the city's nursing facilities – are on the city's radar for health and safety inspections, but he did not describe what recent inspections showed.</p>
<p>"We know this building," Coogan said. "We know it well. We work with the staff here and the management to try to make sure if they need help, we're here for them."</p>
<p>Firefighters carried residents out of burning building</p>
<p>More than half the facility's 70 residents had to be evacuated either through windows or out various doors, Bacon said. Many were physically carried out because of mobility issues.</p>
<p>Bacon said the number of window air conditioning units made rescues difficult and forced first responders to use smaller windows to pull people out."The windows that would have affected the best rescues had the ACs in them, so rescues had to be done through smaller windows," Bacon said.</p>
<p>The chief added that the fire damage was limited to one wing of the building, but that smoke had engulfed the facility's interior, likely leading to deaths and dozens of injuries.</p>
<p>"The fire attack was very quick, it was just a very smokey fire," said Bacon.</p>
<p>Evacuees left behind medicine amid frantic escape</p>
<p>The building's many evacuees were taken to the city's homeless overflow shelter, where city staff and others were assisting them with getting medicine, clothes and other belongings they had to leave behind in the frantic evacuation.</p>
<p>Coogan, the mayor of Fall City, said all the assisted living facility's medical records were in file folders that survived the blaze."We just carried out a bunch of medical records," Bacon told reporters. "The room they were stored in was salvaged, so we were able to get all those records down so they can get medications for all the displaced people."</p>
<p>This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 9 dead after fire engulfs senior living facility in Massachusetts</p>
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