A fire broke out at a house in Bradford on Wednesday afternoon, killing four pets and rendering the home uninhabitable, officials said.

The Bradford Fire Department received a 911 call at approximately 4:10 p.m. from a resident who had returned home to 296 West Meadow Road find the two-story building engulfed in smoke and flames. 

Bryan Nowell, Bradford’s fire chief, said the caller was a man who rented a portion of the building at the corner of West Meadow Road and West Road.

“When we got there, there was a heavy fire at the back side of the building,” said Nowell.

Emergency crews conducted an initial search and confirmed that the primary owner of the home was not inside at the time. But three dogs and one cat perished from the smoke and heat in the building fire. 

According to Nowell, two of the pets — a dog and a cat — belonged to the tenant who reported the fire, while the other two dogs were owned by the building’s landlord and were found on the first floor.

With assistance from firefighters in neighboring towns — including Henniker, Newbury, Sutton, New London, Washington, Warner, Hillsboro, Hopkinton, and Capital Area C1 — the fire was brought under control by 5:30 p.m.

However, there was extensive damage to the basement of the home, said Nowell. 

“The heat and smoke from the fire pretty much makes the rest of the residence not being able to be utilized because there's smoke and heat damage throughout the building,” said Nowell. 

Nowell said the Fire Marshal determined that the fire started in the kitchen area of the basement, but what sparked it is still unknown.

Sruthi Gopalakrishnan can be reached at sgopalakrishnan@cmonitor.com