'Countless lives were saved': Fall River fire chief praises firefighters' efforts at deadly assisted living fire

FALL RIVER, Mass. (WLNE) — Fall River Fire Department Chief Jeffrey Bacon addressed the media for the second day following Sunday’s deadly fire at the Gabriel House assisted living facility that left nine people dead and multiple others injured.

Chief Bacon started off the press conference praising the efforts of all Fall River Fire Department personnel who assisted in battling the Oliver Street blaze .

He said that those firefighters are not yet ready to speak to the media about their experiences in the incident.

“The emotions are a little too raw, the stories are a little to vivid,” said Bacon, adding that the efforts of the entirety of the department on hand were “nothing short of heroic.”

He said that engine 5 arrived first to an “eerily quiet” scene despite the flames shooting f