“Our heart goes out to all of the families of the people that were injured here, and the people that lost their lives here,” Bacon said in press conference, just after midnight Monday morning. “Fall River stands with them and sends out our thoughts and prayers.”

Bacon did not say how many people were killed in the fire, how many others were injured, or how many firefighters were hurt.

Bacon said a triage center was set up at St. Anne’s Hospital, which is just feet away from the living facility, for families to reunite with people currently in the hospital.

It’s unclear how many people live in the facility. However, according to a state website listing assisted living homes, there are 100 total units on the site, which was built in 1999.

Leo and Josette Johnson, both of Fall River, were near the triage area at St. Anne’s waiting to receiver updates on their mother Carolyn Johnson, who lives at on the top floor of Gabriel House. Carolyn, 68, is one of the lucky ones, they said, as her oxygen was low and she had some smoke inhalation.

Leo, 45, said he first found out about the fire when he got a call from someone who heard about it over the scanner.

“I just drove right over there,” he said, “and I was kinda freaking out because she wasn’t one of the ones outside.” Johnson said he went around the back of the building where his mother lives, and when he came back to the front, she was outside soaking wet because the sprinklers were going off.

Josette said when they rolled Carolyn to St. Anne’s Hospital for treatment, Carolyn told them one of the residents was helping others before fire crews made it to the scene.

“When the fire started, obviously a lot of them are elderly and they’re sleeping,” Josette, 46, recalled Carolyn explaining. The man, she said, “was going around banging on people’s door” to alert them of the fire.

Investigators assigned to the State Fire Marshal’s office and the Massachusetts Department of Fire Services are providing support at the scene, according to a statement from Jake Wark, a spokesperson for the state Department of Fire Services.

Bacon said fire investigators will work in the coming days to “put the scene back together and figure out what happened.”

When asked how long that may take, he responded: “I can’t put a timeline on the investigation.”

Fall River Mayor Paul Coogan was at the scene late on Sunday night, according to a statement from his office.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

Collin Robisheaux can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @ColRobisheaux. Adam Sennott can be reached at [email protected].