One dead after 6-alarm fire in East Boston

Fire crews battled a six-alarm fire that spread to multiple buildings and left one person dead in East Boston Tuesday morning, according to city officials.

The Boston Fire Department was called to the scene of the fire at a multi-family home on Meridian Street just after 5 a.m., said Boston Fire Commissioner Paul Burke. The flames quickly spread to two adjacent buildings.

Fire officials said at an 8 a.m. press conference that they fought the fire from adjacent houses in an attempt to keep it from spreading down the block. Five people inside the building were rescued via ladders, but one person died in the blaze, officials confirmed.

No additional information about the person who died was available.

"This was a tough fire. A lot of people in it. It was going so fast when they got there, we don't know how it started," Burke said.

Over 130 firefighters worked to battle the flames, the city fire department posted on social media. One firefighter was taken to the hospital with a minor injury to his knee, Burke told reporters. The fire commissioner said he was surprised more firefighters weren't injured in the blaze, and that it was a "really tough fire" to battle.

Six others were taken to the hospital, the department said.

Mayor Michelle Wu came to the scene of the fire Tuesday morning to show support for first responders, as well as the residents now displaced from their homes. The fire department estimated approximately 30 residents were displaced, and the damage could total around $5 million.

With additional reporting from WBUR's Newscast Unit