Overview
- The fire at 37 Montgomery Road was reported about 1:30 a.m. Sunday when a woman who lived at the home alerted a neighbor who then called 911.
- Responding crews from Stark, Milan and Groveton found the house fully involved with flames pouring from doors and windows and battled the blaze for about three hours before bringing it under control.
- After the fire was controlled around 4:30 a.m., firefighters found an adult man and two dogs dead inside and a second adult was seriously injured and flown to Massachusetts General Hospital.
- The New Hampshire State Fire Marshal’s Office is leading the investigation, does not consider the fire suspicious, and currently identifies a wood stove in the home as a likely primary factor while an autopsy is pending.
- Officials emphasized routine wood-stove safety—annual chimney cleanings, proper ash disposal and keeping combustibles three to five feet away—reminding residents in rural, wood-heated communities to follow those precautions.