PHOTOS: It’s been 21 years since one of the most heartbreaking days in Worcester’s history.
On Dec. 3, 1999, a blaze at the Worcester Cold Storage and Warehouse Co. claimed the lives of six Worcester firefighters. Each December since, the city has remembered the sacrifices of Lt. Thomas Spencer, Lt. Timothy Jackson Sr., Lt. James Lyons III and Firefighters Jeremiah Lucey, Paul Brotherton and Joseph McGuirk. Firefighters across the city will have a moment of silence to remember the “Worcester 6" on Wednesday. There will be no public memorial event because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Flames consumed the Worcester Cold Storage and Warehouse Co. building 21 years ago after two homeless people staying inside knocked over a candle. More than 75 firefighters rushed inside the Franklin Street building. The Worcester 6 never made it out of the 110,000-square-foot building, which had a maze-like structure inside.