Douglas, MA — With their crews split between simultaneous calls, Douglas Firefighters responded to a tractor fire with extension to a mobile home Monday afternoon. The fire escalated to a second alarm before it was extinguished.
According to the Douglas Fire Department, at approximately 2:30 PM on Monday, June 16th, 2025, Douglas Fire and Police were dispatched to a reported tractor fire near the structure at 215 South St. Upon arrival, crews discovered an exterior [tractor] fire with extension into the attic and interior of a single wide mobile home.
When the fire was dispatched, the dual-staffed (fire/EMS) personnel were handling two simultaneous medical calls. One ambulance was just clearing Milford Hospital, and the other was just returning to quarters, leaving only two firefighters to staff Engine 1 and Chief Furno to assume Incident Command. Due to the lack of available manpower and this area of town not being covered by hydrants, a 2nd alarm was immediately struck, bringing in mutual aid Engine Companies and Tankers from surrounding towns.
The small initial crew on Engine 1 was able to perform an aggressive interior attack, knocking down the bulk of the fire before mutual aid companies arrived on the scene. As additional units arrived, crews were put to work extinguishing the remaining hot spots, overhauling, and ventilating the structure.
The fire was placed under control within approximately 20 minutes, allowing second alarm tankers to return to service. Several engine companies remained to assist, and all units cleared the scene after approximately 2 hours. No injuries were reported.
The Massachusetts State Fire Marshal’s Office was requested to the scene to conduct an investigation, which determined the cause to be accidental. The structure sustained an estimated $150,000 in damage and was deemed uninhabitable.
Agenices that responded included the Douglas Fire Department, Douglas Police Department, Uxbridge Fire Department, Webster Fire/Rescue, Northbridge Fire Department, East Thompson Volunteer Fire Department (CT), Sutton Fire Department, Dudley Fire Department, East Burrillville Fire Department (RI), Pascoag Fire Department (RI), Harrisville Fire Department (RI), Millville Fire Department, and Webster EMS.
