Snow, crowds, gas lines igniting cut floor plans not to mention strong winds. This was a real Charlie Foxtrot. Good thing these men knew their jobs as well as they did.

I was living in Everett 22 years old me and a friend went to that fire that Sunday afternoon I was on the Everett auxiliary went home grapped my gear and both of us made our way through the fire roadblocks and lines to seek out my father who was a Everett firefighter working that day we found him and lent a hand where we could never forget that All the firefighters World War Two vets up against a firefight like no other

We were in Beverly ma and could see the smoke 15 miles away.

We could see the smoke from our Little League field. Waltham/Watertown line. Amazing!

Never knew Chelsea was that screwed up.

I went to school across from city hall.... this fire burned 10 years after Chelsea in a dump in danverse.... Holy flashback

I was born in 2002 so I’m just discovering this now. Crazy how the wind was gusting to 100mph, makes me wonder about what storm system was out there.

Wow❤ I grew in Chelsea I was 13 years old I went to Williams school at that time 😂 I could go on for hours it is the sadist time four Chelsea residence peppy

Hard to believe it was 50 years ago. I'll never forget it. It's also hard to believe no one lost their life. In retrospect, it was one of the largest urban renewal projects in history. I'm not being glib, the State and Federal disaster aid helped a dying city renew itself.

I know this was decades ago but im curious as to wether an exact ignition location was ever found and if there was ever a cause of the initial fire determined.

I was only 4 years old but I remember it well. We watched the fire from our living room window in Orient Heights, East Boston. The biggest fire I’ve ever seen.

THE CONSPIRACY IDIOTS TALKING BOUT THE MAUI FIRE NEEDS TO WATCH THIS ,,HUGE FIRES PULL IN OXYGEN AT 100 MPH ,,THAT ACTS LIKE A BLOW TORCH ,,A BLOW TORCH OR ACCETALENE TORCH CAN MELT 3 INCH STEEL ,,THE MAUI FIRES WERE FUELED BY WIND AND PLENTY TO BURN ,,,NOTHING MAGIC ABOUT THEM

I sat on a hill and watched it. That's the west side of Boston, which is pretty far from Chelsea

My 2nd uncle, was the fire captain from the Medford Fire Department that was forced to abandon their engine company in order to save the crew's lives...... Medford Fire was dispatched on the 2nd alarm.

My brother Joe (RIP) and I almost got trapped in a junk yard when the Chelsea fire (conflagration) started... I will never forget what I saw and heard exploding behind us while running away. I was looking back over my shoulder with Joe dragging me by my arm thru the junk hole ... omg... the sky went black and the sun dissappeard. There was a whipping wind carrying hunks of burning junk ... pissed my mom off hugely... afterwards when we could walk thru there I recall the black top had melted and all sorts of household items were entrapped in the mess. The devastation was unreal..we lived on chestnut and Everett ave... luckily we were spared.. I was 12 years old then..I'll be 62 next month... ironically Joe passed away on Oct 14, 2004 the 31st anniversary of the fire...

why the delated alarm?

my family and aunt uncle and cousins lived on eagle hill in east boston and seen the fires from her 3rd floor porch facing the back of cabot paints across the creek and seen the entire thing... crazyyy

This fire reminds me of the knickerbocker fire of 1977 in bushwick Brooklyn nyc it started in a piano warehouse the fire whent to 5 alarms and numerous special calls for units the fire destroyed 2 blocks of bushwick

Thank you for this video. I was 5 years old, living in Weymouth, MA, at the time of the fire. My father took us all to someplace where we could see the fire burning. I was frightened by what I saw. I can still see the massive plume of black smoke rising from the orange glow on the ground. I don't know how far we were from the fire, but I believe we had not left Weymouth. I'll have to look at a map to get a better idea. My parents had been looking at houses in the Southbridge area of MA, and were preparing to move, as my father had gotten a promotion. We moved to Sturbridge on November 14, 1973, exactly one month after the Chelsea fire. On a side of a side note, my sister and I just sold Mom and Dad's house, on November 14, 2022; 49 years, to the day, after buying it. Strange how memories intertwine. Edit: I've looked at a map and remember, now, we were at the shore, looking at the fire over the water. That put us about 12 miles from the fire. It still looked huge, even from that far away.

I’ll never forget this when it happened…..we could see the smoke all the way up in Lawrence from 495

Mike barnicle the dirtbag plagiurist pos.

I was born and raised in Chelsea as was my parents. My Dad was a Chelsea firefighter an retired in 66 so he missed that fire but he fought plenty in his time there.Chelsea was a ghetto to me and I left in 65. I had a good lift there but it was a run down city and maybe the best thing to happen was a fire to get rid of lots of rundown buildings. It's a tough way to go but it needed it. I'm glad I don't live there anymore.

My dad Charles A Crowley fought that fire.

Can We get A Amen?.

We was talking about tis justice 2day.

Smoke's On the WATER.

Always we will born in the ashes we are chelsea God bless chelsea

I have no memory of this fire.

I can’t even imagine what that must’ve been like

Whitey and his guys tucked it to you over there.

Was visiting Taunton and returning home to Nh on the Tobin Bridge, couldn’t believe it, looked the entire city was on fire.

I was 10 and my dad said lets go after the second alarm and we watched from the soldiers home.

I hope he’s doing ok now

I wonder what happened to all the people who lost everything?

Incredible footage.A war zone.

Tragic

My mom grew up in Chelsea. We could see the smoke from our house in Danvers in ‘73. She was in tears.

I was 6 yrs old watching this fire from the Soldiers Home, I grew up in Prattville after the Blizzard of 78 destroyed our house in Beachmont part of Revere, the one memory I can remember was being on my dads shoulders and seeing the biggest clouds of smoke and the biggest flames I have ever seen being fanned up by the winds, I grew up one street down from then Chief Fothergill and my parents were best friends with future Chief Ed Conolly, this and the blizzard of 78 are 2 disasters I will never forget and will always be proud to say I grew up in Chelsea, Massachusetts, Chelsea Strong!!!!

By the way that fire i was 2

Was there a cabinet place in that fire

I was 48 years old when I found this. Never knew this.

Fire storms creates their own weather apparently.

I was about 6...I remember we drove there to pick up my aunt and cousins, so they could stay with us...I could see the fires...it was really scary.

i was visiting relatives in east boston and had to leave because my dad was a billerica firefighter and was called in for backup for other towns,

I remember it well. Watched the smoke rise from Wollaston Beach in Quincy. We collected food and clothing in school for the fire victims. I visited the area with my father the next weekend. I remember the National Guard out there, and it looked like a scene from WW2.

My dad was a Lieutenant with the Chelsea fire department. His name was Charles Crowley. I have original footage of this fire.

I've never heard of this fire before. It happened 7 years before I was born but my Dad and Mom were teenagers at the time so I know they knew of this fire. I'm surprised they never told us about it when we were kids. Maybe because we live in Fall River, Mass but this was definitely on the news. What a crazy huge fire.n

Coming home from nh getting cigarettes and beer with my parents saw the smoke and turned on the radio and whdh said Chelsea was on fire asked grandma to there she said no way and be quiet or I am coming back there

I know how it's. Before my Dad took over fire chief for the small town in Yates country ny all the fires trucks was back in the 40's.the fire chief before took all the money for new fire engines will use the money to fix up his home. My dad take over as the new fire chief in 1972-1991 the first thing he did buy all new fire engines and a new brush truck and a new tanker truck for the small town in Yates country ny. I became a volunteer firefighter paramedic for the small town in Yates country ny. The mayor give my dad a big thank you for being all the fire trucks in for the town.

Wow. Thought it was California when I first saw that fire in some serious winds. God bless these folks. Fire is so devastating. Be safe and Be careful out there!