Most of the 30 tenants displaced by a fire at the Royal Crest Apartments on Tuesday evening were expected to be back in their homes by last night, according to Emergency Management Director Jeffrey Coco.
The blaze was caused by a dryer that caught fire, according to fire Chief Andrew Melnikas. The fire spread through the walls and damaged the building at 32 Royal Crest Drive.
None of the tenants was allowed into the building Tuesday night. Several stayed with friends while others were given temporary housing at the Residence Inn in Tewksbury and the Holiday Inn just down Route 114 in Lawrence, Coco said.
Aimco, the Denver corporation that owns Royal Crest, was very helpful in finding shelter for the tenants, he said. One of the displaced families stayed at a guest apartment at the complex, he said.
“The management team was very accommodating,” Coco said, and assured the tenants that the cause of the dryer fire was “purely accidental.”
The first alarm was sounded at 6:25 p.m., with the second alarm coming 20 minutes later. North Andover firefighters were assisted by companies from Andover and Methuen. No injuries were reported.
The firefighters performed “an excellent stop,” Coco said.
