REVERE LANDMARK UP IN SMOKE
Four-alarm blaze takes down Sozio appliance store
A raging, four-alarm fire sent a massive black cloud billowing into the sky yesterday as it reduced a Revere landmark to a smoldering pile of rubble.
Firefighters from across the North Shore raced to the Sozio appliance and furniture store on Squire Road about 4:30 p.m. after the owner called to report that a fire had broken out inside the one-story family business, Revere Deputy Fire Chief Glen Rich said. As the first firefighters on scene tried to douse the flames, Rich said the blaze quickly consumed the building, causing the small appliances and refrigerators inside to explode.
As fire crews took protective positions around the roaring inferno, the fire sent a massive black cloud into the sky over the business that could be seen from miles away.
Paul Bennett of Malden said he could smell the smoke from his house. He was among the area residents who looked on as a local fixture went up in flames.
“It’s been here for years,” Bennett said. “I’m 67 and it was even here when I was a kid. You could say it was a landmark.”
According to the company’s website, Sozio Home Furnishings and Appliances has been selling furniture and appliances in the Boston area since 1949. It also has locations in Cambridge, Danvers and Neponset Circle in Boston.
Glen praised the fire crews that controlled the blaze from spreading to nearby buildings.
“The guys did a great job getting inside,” he said. “Unfortunately, the fire was too advanced for us.”
Firefighters from Boston, Cambridge, Chelsea, Lynn, Malden and Medford also assisted at the scene. There were no reported injuries.
Fire officials estimated the fire caused between $500,000 and $1 million in damage. The cause of the blaze remains under investigation.