Tower Ladder Collapses Onto Mattapan Home During Fire

BOSTON (CBS) – A fire truck ladder was safely removed from a home in Mattapan early Thursday morning, hours after it collapsed onto the triple decker.

The tower ladder got stuck on the Duke Street house while firefighters were putting out flames there late Wednesday night.

A firefighter who was in the bucket on the end of the ladder when it collapsed was able to climb onto the roof.

Fire Commissioner Joe Finn called the incident a "major structural fail of the truck."

"It's too early to tell what possibly could have caused the ladder to fail, thank goodness that no one was injured," Finn said.

The bucket was about two feet above the roof when the top portion of the ladder buckled, according to Finn.

A crane was brought in to remove the ladder from the house overnight.

Finn says the truck is 13 years old and is a spare, because the normal truck is currently being repaired.

The incident is under investigation.

There was heavy smoke on the third floor when firefighters responded at about 7:40 p.m. All residents were safely evacuated and the fire was quickly knocked down. Fifteen people were displaced in the fire. No injuries were reported.