Nantasket Avenue fire displaces 6 families

Chief John Dunn reports that the Hull Police Department responded to an apartment fire on Nantasket Avenue Friday afternoon. The Kenberma fire displaced six families. Its cause is being investigated.
At approximately 4 p.m., Hull Police were notified about a fire alarm at 527 Nantasket Ave., a multi-family apartment building.
When officers arrived, a male tenant was uncooperative and would not leave the unit, despite the blaze. Multiple officers had to go inside the building in order to get the man out safely. 
He was placed in protective custody and taken to a local hospital for evaluation.
Three police officers suffered minor smoke inhalation and were transported to the hospital out of an abundance of caution.
The rest of the residents were able to make it out of the building safely and no other injuries were reported.
Firefighters from the Hull Fire Department quickly extinguished the flames. The unit where the fire occurred sustained significant damage and other units had smoke and water damage. Utilities in the building have been temporarily shut off.
Six families living in the building were all displaced and most were being assisted by the American Red Cross.
Investigators from the State Fire Marshal's office have been called to the scene. The initial investigation indicates that the fire originated in the kitchen. The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Free cleaning supplies at Central Fire Station

Red Cross emergency coordinator Craig Wolfe reports that free storm cleanup supplies have been made available to residents who need them. Visit the Central Fire Station at the corner of A Street and Nantasket Ave. 

Chief asks everyone to stay off Hull's roads

Fire Chief Chris Russo issued a storm update this afternoon, just after high tide. While he reopened the roads after the tide water receded, he said he expects to close them again in advance of tonight's high tide, around midnight. The chief, who heads up Hull's Emergency Management Team, is asking that – unless it's vital – please stay off the roads.

Here's the gist of his urgent message:

"There are two – possibly three – more tides that will be worse! I will be ordering the roads closed again tonight when we are again flooded. If there are urgent items needed, please take care of them quickly this afternoon, when the roads are open.

We are seeing people all over the South Shore making very poor decisions and travelling into these waters. When darkness sets in later and the water comes back we don't want anyone to lose their life."

High school graduation, KidCare, Pride events headline Hull Saturday

The peninsula will be popping today as Hull Firefighters present their annual Kidcare event, Hull Pride holds a family field day and then the adults party at the Hull Yacht Club, and – of course – Hull High's Class of 2017 will be graduated at 1 p.m. at Finlayson Field.

Details for KidCare and Hull Pride are as follows:

• Kids’ Photo IDs. Could you lay your hands on vital data, including a recent photo, of your child if he or she becomes lost or goes missing? Hull Firefighters present their annual KidCare Photo ID event from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Central Fire Station. Kids will have lots of fun while their data is being collected for a free photo ID that you can take home and place in an accessible place. Project KidCare was developed by Polaroid Corp. and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. The event is presented in Hull by local firefighters, with support from The Hull Times.

• Hull Pride. Come celebrate Hull’s vibrant LGBTQ community. The celebration begins with a family field day from 1-3 p.m. at Mariners Park, 5 Fitzpatrick Way, featuring live music by “Sea Witch,” food, and games for the kids. Hull Pride items will also be on sale. The Pride Party follows, from 3-8 p.m., at Hull Yacht Club, 5 Fitzpatrick Way, with food, cocktails, dancing, and a 50/50 raffle. The events will be held rain or shine.

High CO levels force tenants from home Christmas morning

By Allan Stein

 A carbon monoxide leak forced the evacuation of more than a dozen tenants of an apartment building at 407 Nantasket Ave. Christmas morning, including one who later died at a local hospital.

Hull Fire Chief Christopher Russo said authorities found that the ventilation pump and piping in one of the units had malfunctioned, so it wasn’t venting outside and was going through the entire building.

Russo said a tenant notified the central fire station that carbon monoxide detectors inside the building were going off. 

The department responded at about 9 a.m. and, upon entering the building, firefighters’ CO detectors “went into alarm, signifying that there was a CO detection,” he said.

Russo said the captain on duty ordered all apartments be evacuated until the source could be located. The three-story building reportedly had 19 tenants in 13 residential units and one commercial unit.

National Grid workers disabled all gas coming into the building until the source of the CO could be located and repaired, Russo said.

While being evacuated, Jonathan Mooney, a 27-year-old tenant, reported feeling ill and was taken to South Shore Hospital, where he later died, the chief said.

“The final determination from the medical examiner on cause of death has not been determined, although the team at SSH do not believe this was CO-related,” Russo said.

As of today [Thursday, Dec. 29], there had been “no report to my office from the medical examiner that this was a CO-related death,” he added.

Russo said the department requested three additional rescue units and a mutual aid engine to assist in the evacuation. There were no other requests for transport to the hospital, he said.

The building, which was built around 1900, formerly housed the historic Oakland House and Mike Burns Inn. The owner is listed as 407 Nantasket Realty Trust, with Paul Gratta as trustee, according to the assessors department.

The Red Cross assisted tenants in finding lodging after they were evacuated, fire officials said.

Hull Emergency Preparedness Coordinator Craig Wolfe, the town’s Red Cross liaison, said the incident fell short of the 20 evacuations that would constitute a “mass care” incident.

“People had places to go to and units were not destroyed. It wasn’t a fire,” Wolfe said.

Russo said that several tenants have been allowed back into the building during the past few days, with the condition that all smoke and CO detectors be replaced. 

All heating systems had to be inspected, replaced, or repaired before five of the units could be occupied, he said.

Hull Public Health Director Joyce Sullivan said all building units were up to date on smoke and CO detectors following a yearly inspection in June and August. The inspections are mandatory prior to renewal of occupancy permits, she said. 

The Hull Board of Health requires each unit to have at least one smoke and CO detector placed within 10 feet of a bedroom, she said.

[The Associated Press contributed material to this story.]