Kenyan Family in Lowell, Massachusetts Left Homeless After Fire Guts Down Houses

A Kenyan family living in Lowell, Massachusetts was left homeless after their house was destroyed by fire on Sunday morning.

Bishop David Karaya of CCF Ministries Lowell and his family are among residents of two multi-family homes who were displaced by the five-alarm fire.

WCVB reports that the inferno started in one house on Clare Street and spread into a neighboring home. There are several apartment units in each building.

“I went in my bathroom and my screen window started burning. I then saw the flames from the second-floor porch next door,” said Michael Prak, who owns one of the homes that caught fire. 

“I knocked on the door of my niece, my wife, and my tenants to make sure they got out.”

Fire crews from surrounding communities responded to the scene to get the flames under control.

Lowell fire Chief Phillip Charron said 22 residents were displaced by the fire, which witnesses say appeared to have started on a second-floor porch. 

The Red Cross of Massachusetts and the Salvation Army of Massachusetts provided assistance to the displaced residents. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

The Kenyan community in Lowell and the US at large are raising funds to help the family get started again.