Overnight blaze guts church rectory
TOWNSEND » A church rectory believed to be one of the oldest buildings in Townsend was gutted by a four-alarm fire that also left a priest who tried to stop the flames with burns to his hands early Monday morning, according to firefighters.
Fire Chief Mark Boynton said crews were called to the rectory of St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church, 1 School St., Townsend, at 1:51 a.m. Monday for a report of a fire that quickly went to four alarms.
Boynton said it took officials four hours to contain the fire.
“We had smoke damage and fire damage to all three floors,” he said.
The only injury caused by the blaze was suffered by its occupant, the Rev. Jeremy St. Martin. According to Megan Barnes, a friend of Martin’s, the priest suffered burns on both of his hands after trying to put the blaze out himself. He was then transported to Nashoba Valley Medical Center for treatment before being released.
Martin and Barnes collaborated on the development of a mural depicting the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Pepperell this past summer.
The Rev. Charles Kelley, deacon for St. John and the Our Lady of Grace Parish, said the rectory in Townsend was first established around 1895 and is one of the oldest buildings in town.
Kelley explained that Martin was first woken up by the building’s fire alarm and tried to put out the fire himself with a fire extinguisher. Martin’s efforts to extinguish the fire were partially successful at first, but when he went to find another fire extinguisher in the rectory, the flame continued to spread throughout the building and he suffered seconddegree burns on his hands.
“He was unsettled for sure after the events he went through,” Kelley said. “You go to bed as a priest and wake up as a firefight
er. But our fire services are so great and they tended to him so well after such a disruptive start to the day.”
Kelley said Martin is currently staying at the Our Lady of Grace rectory in Pepperell but will continue to lead services in Townsend. Plans for church services in Townsend this Christmas are still “full steam ahead,” according to Kelley. St. John is planning to host Christmas Mass at 4 p.m. Thursday and 7 p.m. Friday. As for the rectory at
St. John, Kelley said there are no active plans for what will happen to the building.
“Right now, we’re just taking a moment to be grateful that Rev. Martin is still with us,” he said.
Boynton said the cause of the fire is still under investigation.
Members from nine fire departments helped extinguish the blaze, including firefighters from Fitchburg, Brookline, Groton, Pepperell, Ashby and Shirley.