Family, 3 Dogs Displaced by Accidental Wood Stove Fire

The importance of a single fire hydrant was never more evident for a Merrimack woman who said the damage after a fire broke out in her family's West Road home would undoubtedly be much worse without it.

Merrimack Fire Chief Michael Currier agreed with Diane Asai's assessment.

"It probably wouldn't be under control yet," Currier said around 7:15 p.m. Friday evening.

Instead, as 7:09 p.m., the fire that was called in via 911 at 6:20 p.m was under control and fire personnel were overhauling the scene.  Access to water and a quick attack by personnel on the scene were critical to saving the home from further damage.

Asai said the hydrants were installed around her neighborhood –including one right in their front yard – about a decade ago to accommodate the Brieann Drive development that loops around to West Road in the northern end of town. Before, the fire department had to bring in tankers, she said.

"For this to get knocked down so fast, those hydrants have paid for themselves," Asai said.

According to Asai, her family lit their first fire of the season in their wood stove, Friday evening, and not long after, she heard a strange crackling coming from the walls. She said she went down to the wood stove in the basement and found fire in the walls around the chimney and outside the wood stove. 

Asai, who said they just had the wood stove and its components cleaned and readied for the season, rounded up her husband, their daughter and their three dogs and got out of the house and pulled theirs cars off the property, as well.

"Fortunately, all you have to say is, 'want to go for a ride?'" Asai said, joking about how easy it was to get the dogs out of the home. For someone whose home for the last 29 years was full of water, smoke and fire damage, she had a very calm demeanor.

Asai said it could've been worse, though she wasn't aware of the full damage yet, but she was thankful things like the home's addition and the furnace were on the other side of the home, out of the danger zone. She was crossing her fingers that there was no serious damage to the roof she and her husband Ken had replaced three weeks ago.

Currier said he was appreciative for the family getting themselves and the animals out of the house so quickly. He said when he arrived on scene, right behind Engine 1, the homeowner informed him that all people and animals were out of the home and they'd "removed some extra gasoline from the garage."

"I thanked them for that," Currier said.

He said the two-story, colonial-style home suffered the most damage to the right side of the house. The fire climbed up the walls and caused some damage on the first and second floors and started traveling across the back under the eves along the roof. 

When Engine 1 arrived on scene there was heavy fire showing on the right side of the house, Currier said. 

In addition to Merrimack Fire and Rescue and Merrimack Police, units from Bedford, Nashua, Amherst and Manchester responded.

Rather than call a full second alarm, he requested assistance from surrounding towns. An engine a piece from Nashua and Bedford responded and Amherst was covering the South Station while Manchester was covering the Central Station.

"It was traveling very fast," Currier said. "It was on the outside working in."

Fire Marshal John Manuele said his assessment from his initial investigation is that the fire was accidental, caused by a wood stove malfunction. He said he didn't have definitive reason for the malfunction, he said it had been cleaned but there were a variety of things that could have contributed to the fire igniting.

Due to the damage and the fact that there is no power running to the home, Capt. Manuele said home was not habitable and wouldn't be until the damage could be repaired. 

Additionally, Manuele said one firefighter did sustain an electrical shock, but it wasn't serious and he was treated on the scene.