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The Worcester Fire Department says a fire at the construction site of a new high school in the Massachusetts city was caused by a welding incident.
The fire started Monday afternoon at 299 Highland St., where the new Doherty Memorial High School is being built and next door to the current high school.
A dark smoke plume was large enough to be picked up on StormTeam 5's weather radar, and the fire was visible from WCVB's weather camera located at the College of the Holy Cross.
"I do not use the word 'hell' as a slang word, but it looked like what I think of as Hell," said Joan Dunn, who lives near the construction site.
Firefighters who responded to the scene found heavy flames burning foam roofing insulation that was loaded onto the roof of the five-story building earlier in the day.
Officials said one person was transported to an area hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
According to the fire department, workers were using welding tools when the piled roofing material ignited to start the fire.
Dunn said she asked one of the workers what happened to cause the fire.
"He said it was a welder's spark that hit the roofing material, which was very flammable," Dunn said.
Worcester fire officials also said the required "hot work" permit for the company constructing the new Doherty Memorial High School was expired when the fire happened.
The department said it will not issue another "hot work" permit to that construction company until an acceptable construction safety plan is presented and approved.
The city's Department of Inspectional Services is working with the construction manager to assess the damage to the building and determine the stability and integrity of the affected parts of the structure.
Worcester Mayor Joseph Petty said Monday that the new Doherty Memorial High School was scheduled to be ready in time for 2024, but that it is unclear how the fire would impact the construction schedule.
"It's like a punch to the gut," Petty said. "You put in a lot of time and effort. A lot of time went into the planning of the school.
"It's a big project," the mayor added. "It's a $300 million project, and I know Worcester will come together like we usually do. We'll figure this out, assess the building and how long delayed the project will be, if it is delayed at all."
Members of the Fire and Inspectional Services departments and the Worcester Public Schools district will be meeting with the project manager to review, update and fully implement the site safety plan.
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