BOSCAWEN, NH - The Boscawen Fire Department along with automatic mutual aid was dispatched to a reported house fire at 14 Gage Street around 9:45 pm on December 1st.

First due Concord Engine 5 and Ambulance 5 arrived within minutes to find heavy fire throughout the garage, rapidly extending to the two-story house. Boscawen Fire Chief Tim Kenney arrived and struck a second alarm as reports were received of people still in the burning house.

Ground ladders were thrown to the second floor and Concord's crew made an aggressive interior search under extreme heat and smoke conditions, while Boscawen's crew advanced hose lines. Crews found a male on the second floor; he was brought onto the Tower Ladder for rescue through the second floor bedroom. CPR was performed by the crew and he was pronounced at the scene.

Three residents were on the first floor when they awoke to the smell of burning plastic while neighbors rushed into the house to alert them. They escaped out the front door with three out of the four dogs. The missing dog is thought to have been with the man on the second floor.

Crews worked for hours knocking down the fire and overhauling the garage and two-story home. The home was a total loss. The NH State Fire Marshall was called into the scene.