Fire damages empty Miller Street home in Middleborough; firefighters say no hydrants were nearby
A neighbor called 911 at 7:23 p.m. The first fire crews arrived eight minutes later, and with no hydrants close by, tankers came from Wareham and Carver, Middleborough Firefighters Local 3653 said.
MIDDLEBOROUGH Fire damaged the back of a home on Miller Street in Middleborough on Thursday night, Nov. 5, but no one was inside, the firefighters who fought it said.
A neighbor called 911 at about 7:23 p.m. to report fire on the rear outside walls and deck of the home, Middleborough Firefighters Local 3653, the union that represents the town's firefighters, said in an account posted Friday.
Middleborough police officers got there first and confirmed heavy fire at the rear of the house, the union said. Car 3, Engine 1 and Coastal Ambulance 1 went from Center Station, and Engine 2 went from South Station.
No hydrants close by
Because there are no hydrants nearby and the drive to that part of town is long, the shift commander struck a box alarm right away and asked Plymouth County Control for a working fire assignment, the union said.
That call brought in every available off-duty Middleborough firefighter, an engine from Lakeville and tankers from Wareham and Carver, which carry water to scenes without hydrants. An engine from Bridgewater covered Middleborough's stations while crews were at the fire.
Car 3 and Engine 2 arrived at about 7:31 p.m., eight minutes after the call, the union said. With a shift commander and three firefighters on each engine, crews set up command, attacked the fire, searched the home and had a water supply in place within nine minutes of arriving.
The house is a raised ranch, so ground ladders were enough for search, rescue and ventilation work, the union said. It added that the department's tower truck "was not staffed at the time of the incident."
What burned
"Thankfully, the home was unoccupied," the union said. The fire was mostly kept to the second-floor kitchen, the rear deck, an outside corner of the house and small parts of the attic.
The union said the fire "highlights the importance of maintaining adequate staffing, properly staffing apparatus, and keeping fire stations open to ensure an effective and quick response throughout our community."
It thanked Middleborough Police, Coastal Ambulance, the Lakeville, Carver, Wareham and Bridgewater fire departments and the Plymouth County Sheriff's Bureau of Criminal Investigation.
What we do not know yet
The union did not give a cause or a damage estimate, and it did not say whether anyone who lives there has been displaced or whether anyone was hurt. South Coast 360 is asking the Middleborough Fire Department about the cause, the damage and the union's point on staffing, and will update this story with its answer.
Label: Reported by us, from the town's posted records.
Notes
Every fact about the fire comes from the account Middleborough Firefighters Local 3653, the firefighters union, posted on its official Facebook page on Friday, Nov. 6, and is attributed to the union. Quoted lines are word for word. Times are the union's 1923 and 1931 hours in 12-hour form. No cause, damage estimate, injury or displacement is reported because none was given.
Corrections
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Sources (1)
- Middleborough Firefighters Local 3653, post on its official Facebook pageThe 7:23 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 5 neighbor's 911 call; Miller Street; police first on scene with heavy fire at the rear; the units and stations that responded; no nearby hydrants and the long response, the box alarm and working fire assignment through Plymouth County Control; off-duty members, the Lakeville engine, Wareham and Carver tankers and the Bridgewater cover engine; arrival at 7:31 p.m.; staffing on each engine; water supply within nine minutes of arrival; raised ranch and ground ladders; the tower truck not staffed; the home unoccupied; where the fire burned; the union's staffing statement and its thanks; the scene photo. Posted Fri. Nov. 6, 2026.