Gage Street fire: Worcester police say Medical Examiner’s Office still working to identify victims

The Medical Examiner’s Office continues to work to identify the victims of the fatal four-alarm fire at 2 Gage St. in Worcester, the Worcester Police Department said Tuesday.

Two deaths and three injuries were reported by the city on Saturday, May 14, and on Monday city officials announced the death toll had risen to four.

The third and fourth victims were recovered from the building, Acting Fire Chief Martin Dyer said in a press conference Monday.

“Once the victims are identified and all family members are notified then the WPD will release the identity of each victim,” the department tweeted Tuesday.

Canines from the Massachusetts State Police and Auburn Fire Department were brought to the scene and discovered the third victim at approximately 8 a.m. The fourth victim was found Monday afternoon.

Working at the scene Sunday morning, investigators became aware of the possibility that snakes were in the building and worked with the Environmental Police to remove a number of snakes before the investigation could continue, according to Dyer.

The snakes survived the fire, but Dyer said he could not speak to how dangerous they were.

Due to the complexity of the scene, City Manager Edward Augustus Jr. said the scene of the fire remains under active investigation. Investigators are still trying to determine just how many residents were displaced, with Dyer saying there were at least over 20.

The building is not stable, according to Dyer, and investigators are working there now removing debris by hand.

“It’s a very slow process,” Dyer said. About an hour into the incident the roof began collapsing into the building.

When asked if any residents are unaccounted for Dyer said they don’t have “strong evidence” there are other victims still inside the building.

The fire was reported at the six-family three-decker around 3:31 a.m. Saturday, according to city officials. At 4 p.m. firefighters were still on the scene attempting to complete a full search of the building and address any remaining hot spots.

Jose Galeana, a resident of 2 Gage St., said he was sleeping in his bed when he awoke to a loud voice screaming, “Fire, get out!”

“I got so scared,” Galeana said. “Like I’m gonna die. I started looking and I saw the flame, the fire inside of the apartment. I’m like, ‘No, I’m done.’ So I started just running.”

MassLive reporter Kiernan Dunlop contributed to this story.

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