Nearly 30 Tyngsboro residents watched helplessly yesterday as a raging fire gutted a dozen condos, destroying their homes, furniture and years of mementos.
``It was very sad watching it go up in flames. We lost everything,'' said Sue Faticanti, whose two cats perished in the blaze at Curtis Hill Condos on Village Lane.
It took about 100 firefighters from nine communities 3hours to knock down the five-alarm fire, which broke out on a second-floor deck about 1:30 a.m.
What sparked the fire, which caused $1 million in damages, is still being probed but officials have ruled out arson.
Fire Chief Tim Madden said it was a ``miracle'' that no one was injured.
Firefighters had to pump water from 6,000 feet away, laying lines down the street and over the bridge ``to the other side of town,'' the fire chief said.
``This area doesn't have municipal water. It's a rural community. Slowly, but surely, a lot more of the town is getting it,'' Madden said at the scene, where a large crane tore down the charred units.
Some residents, who fled the burning building in their pajamas, said the damage would have been far less if it hadn't taken so long to get water to the scene. They said the water pressure was bad and fire trucks were running out of water.
``At one point, there was no water and they watched it burn,'' said Valerie Shea, who had just fallen asleep when she heard the faint sound of a fire alarm.
``I grabbed nothing. It's horrible. You can't really describe it,'' Shea said of watching her home burn down.
``Everyone got out safe,'' Shea added. ``That's the important thing.''
Faticanti had lived in her condo for seven years. Her fiance, Bernie Loh, said they had just bought new furniture, remodeled the bathroom and got new hardwood floors.
``Everything in there was new,'' said Loh, who banged on neighbor's doors on his way out. ``It was horrible. You were just hoping everyone got out. It spread fast.''
Loh spent yesterday in the woods looking for the couple's two cats, Smoky and Tigger, who was 17 years old. They are believed to have perished in the blaze.
Faticanti's condo was where the family celebrated most holidays.
``This was where we always gathered. But she has her life, and that's priceless,'' said her sister, Sandy Kulis.
