Improper wood stove sparks chimney fire in Natick home

An improperly installed wood stove sparked a two-alarm chimney fire at a home in Natick Wednesday night, Natick Deputy Fire Chief Victor Lipoma said.

Firefighters were called to a two-story home at 36 Speen St. around 10 p.m., Lipoma said. Flames started by a wood stove had spread into the chimney and walls of the home’s living room by the time crews arrived, he said.

“A wood stove that was hitched up to the fireplace wasn’t lined correctly and the wood on the mantel side of the fireplace heated up,” Lipoma said.

One man who was inside the home at the time of the fire escaped without injury, Lipoma said.

Firefighters from Natick, Sherborn, and Framingham had to tear down some of the home’s old plaster walls and part of its roof to battle the blaze, Lipoma said.

“It was labor intensive,” Lipoma said.

The fire was knocked down relatively quickly and crews left the scene about four-and-a-half hours after they arrived, he said.

Lipoma said both floors of the home will need to be redone.

According to the town assessor’s records, the home was built in 1930 and, with the land included, is worth $571,700.