A three-alarm fire hit the North End of Boston early this morning, killing two people and heavily damaging a building that includes several apartments and a popular restaurant.
According to reports on WBZ, the blaze began around 1:00 AM in what appears to be the second-floor apartment of a Hanover Street building, with two fatalities including a man being found dead inside and another jumping from a window. Early estimates says that the structure suffered approximately $1.5 million damages, including possible water damage at Trattoria Il Panino, a restaurant within the building. (Ristorante Saraceno and Gelateria are located next to Il Panino, but specific information on those places have not been given as of yet.) It looks like the fire was started by careless disposal of smoking material, according to a Twitter post from the Boston Fire Department.
Updates on the fire will be posted here as they come in.
[November 22 update: Boston Magazine states that Trattoria Il Panino was not actually damaged by the fire, and that owner Frank DePasquale has put up some of the residents affected by the blaze at Bricco Suites, a nearby hotel that he owns. (He is also planning to set up a fundraiser at his restaurants.)]
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