SOMERVILLE, Mass. --
A Somerville resident was hospitalized after what appeared to be a freak accident at a fire scene overnight.
Fire crews were responding to a two-alarm house fire at 10 Fisk Ave. about 12:45 a.m. when a fire hose broke loose and took down a fence in a nearby yard at the corner of Fisk and Hinckley Street.
Fire officials were investigating whether the hose, which was still attached to a hydrant, also took down a sign, which struck the resident in the head.
It was unclear exactly what happened with the hose, Fire Chief Kevin Kelleher said, but the incident was under investigation.
A neighborhood eyewitness, Leao Desouza, said firefighters hooked the hose up to the hydrant and then started driving down Fisk Avenue toward the fire a block away
Instead of hose unwinding out of truck as expected, he said, it suddenly stopped as the truck was still moving
He said the hose knocked down the fence and sign, but his account has not been confirmed by investigators.
The unidentified victim, a man in his 40s, was taken to Massachusetts General Hospital with serious injuries. He was said to be a father of two.
As for the fire, everyone got out OK. It was not clear what sparked the blaze, which started in the basement of the single-family house.
Copyright 2010 by TheBostonChannel.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
