2 sisters die in fire at Bellingham, Massachusetts home

Two sisters died in a fire in Bellingham, Massachusetts early Monday morning.

Firefighters rushed to a house on Temi Road around 12:40 a.m. after getting several 911 calls. When they arrived, they found heavy fire tearing through the roof and side of the home and two people trapped inside, according to Bellingham Fire Chief Bill Miller.

The two women were sent to Milford Hospital but later died, Miller said. They were identified on Wednesday as 68-year-old Patricia Cronin and her 75-year-old sister Elizabeth Emery.  Miller said a cat also died in the fire, which was knocked down in about 20 minutes.

In a statement, the state fire marshal's office said the fire "most likely started in a first-floor bedroom at the rear of the home." They believe it was an accident, but the exact cause is still not known.

Investigators said they found "a 19-year-old smoke alarm in the basement, a badly damaged smoke alarm on the first floor, and no alarms on the second floor."

"If you do one thing today, please check your home's smoke alarms to be sure they're working properly," Miller said Wednesday. "We don't want to see another family endure a tragedy like this one."

The fire marshal said smoke alarms should be replaced every 10 years.

No other information is available at this point in the investigation.  

Bellingham, Massachusetts is 44 miles southwest of Boston.