Massachusetts assisted-living-facility fire victims remain hospitalized
Editor's note: An earlier version of this story from the Fall River Herald News, part of the Paste BN Network, misstated Brenda Cropper's medical condition based on information from the Bristol County District Attorney’s Office. She remained in critical condition July 17, 2025, and died of her injuries on July 18.
Follow the update from Saturday, July 19: Death toll from fire at senior living facility in Massachusetts increases
FALL RIVER, MA – The office of Bristol County District Attorney Thomas Quinn III said Brenda Cropper, 66, remained in critical condition July 17 and had not succumbed to injuries she received in the July 13 blaze.
The DA's office initially reported she had died from injuries suffered in the Gabriel House fire in Fall River, but later said the erroneous report "was due to a miscommunication with a medical agency."
"Cropper remains in critical condition at this time," reads the statement. "The BCDAO has been in contact with Ms. Cropper’s family regarding this matter. We will provide updates when they become available."
Cropper later died, the DA confirmed on July 19. She had been hospitalized in critical condition at Rhode Island Hospital since the night of the fire.
The fire broke out shortly after 9:30 p.m. ET at the assisted living facility about 50 miles south of Boston on July 13. About 70 people were trapped, most of them elderly, disabled, and immobile. After arriving at the scene, responding firefighters saw the front of the three-story building engulfed in flames and smoke, with some residents screaming for help.
First responders were forced to kick down doors and pull people out through windows. Multiple people were declared dead at the scene, and about 30 people were transported to local hospitals with injuries, including five Fall River firefighters.
Gabriel House residents killed in the fire were identified as Rui Albernaz, 64; Ronald Codega, 61; Margaret Duddy, 69; Robert King, 78; Kim Mackin, 71; Richard Rochon, 78; Eleanor Willett, 86; and Joseph Wilansky, 77. The county district attorney's office has not yet publicly identified a 70-year-old woman who died in the fire.
As of the afternoon of July 17, two patients from Gabriel House were being treated at Charlton Memorial Hospital, and two other patients were still hospitalized at Saint Anne’s Hospital in Fall River. Another patient was at Rhode Island Hospital’s Level One Trauma Center.
Fall River Fire Chief Jeffrey Bacon said all hospitalized residents of Gabriel House would not be discharged from hospitals until they were set up with housing at other assisted living or similar facilities that would fulfill their needs.
Cause of the fire is still under investigation
The investigation into the fire’s origin and cause continues by the Massachusetts State Police Fire and Explosion Investigation Section assigned to the State Fire Marshall’s Office, the Fall River Fire and Police Departments, in conjunction with state troopers assigned to the county district attorney’s office.
The fire does not appear suspicious, but investigators haven't narrowed down the potential factors to a single cause, according to Massachusetts Department of Fire Services spokesperson Jake Wark. The fire created heavy smoke, and air conditioning units that blocked the windows made rescues difficult, according to Bacon.
During a news conference on July 14, International Association of Fire Fighters General President Edward Kelly said inadequate staffing on the Fall River Fire Department cost people their lives, pointing to chronic understaffing of department engine companies, and that only two of 10 companies are staffed to national standards of four firefighters per company.
The speech led Fall River Mayor Paul Coogan to call for an immediate increase to the department's budget.
Fall River fire chief: 'They'll make movies' about firefighters' heroic actions
During a news conference on July 16, Bacon praised the actions of local firefighters and first responders. At times crying, Bacon said he was immensely proud of the 35 Fall River firefighters who initially reported to the fire and the 50 who fought it with help from police and emergency medical services.
He described rescues by crewmen on Ladder 2 company, who searched the building and carried non-ambulatory people single-handedly through the thick black smoke to waiting emergency medical services.
"That driver of Ladder 2 repeated that action six times," Bacon said with his voice breaking. "These actions are heroic."
Staggered by the scope of the disaster, and the circumstances that made fighting the fire and making the rescues so difficult, he said: "There's no doubt in my mind that fire was destined to kill 50-plus people" – and that Fall River firefighters deserve credit for saving dozens of lives.
"When all these stories come out, they’ll write books about it. They’ll make movies about it," Bacon added. "It’s really that incredible."
Contributing: Christopher Cann and Thao Nguyen, Paste BN
(This story was updated to correct an inaccuracy.)