Saturday Fire Destroys Bradford Home; Officials Blame Cigarette

Photographs courtesy of Victoria Kelley.

Scene of Saturday's fire at 251 South Main St.

Scene of Saturday’s fire at 251 South Main St.

Careless disposal of smoking materials has been determined as the cause of a fire, which destroyed a home in the Bradford section of Haverhill Saturday afternoon.

No injuries were reported from a fire, which gutted a two and one-half story wood frame structure at 251 South Main St. The fire broke out at 3:27 p.m., Saturday, on an outside rear porch, according to interim Haverhill Fire Chief John E. Parow.

“(The fire) started at the rear of the outside and spread into the basement and up into the attic area,” Parow told WHAV.

The 1850-era home is owned by Nora Lee Murphy, according to city records. The home, which received an estimated $275,000 in damage, is believed to be a total loss.