Another Braintree Fire
Is Being Investigated
By Sandy Vondrasek

Little was left of a small house on Peth Road in Braintree after an early morning fire this week. (Herald / Bob Eddy)

A fire of unknown origin destroyed a vacant Braintree residence early Tuesday morning, leaving only a blackened foundation and two chimneys at the site, 1.7 miles up Peth Road.

The small, single-story residence had been vacant for months, said property owner and Braintree dairy farmer Bob Simpson, who was in the process of renovating the building. About $3000 in building supplies—insulation and windows that had been stored in an enclosed porch—also went up in smoke in Tuesday’s fire.

Simpson said he believes the fire was set, and state police fire investigators were already on scene at 7 a.m. Tuesday morning, as Randolph firefighters, who were called out at 4:45 a.m., were still mopping up.

By late morning Tuesday, Sgt. Det. Michael O’Neil issued a brief release on the fire, stating that the cause of the fire remains under investigation. O’Neil urged anyone with information about the blaze to call the Royalton barracks at 234-9933, or the state arson hotline, 1-800-32-ARSON.

Tuesday’s fire was the second time in eight days, and the fourth time in five weeks, that Randolph Village Fire Chief Jay Collette has asked fire investigators to inspect a fire scene. (See side article.)

On Tuesday afternoon, Collette declined to comment on whether he thinks the Peth Road fire was suspicious.

He estimated that the fire, reported by a LaBounty Road resident at 4:45 a.m., probably started between 2-3 a.m. By the time firefighters arrived on scene, the fire chief said, "the residence was completely burned to the ground—there was nothing but a cellar there."

Collette, who had initially called both Randolph Center and East Randolph, in addition to his Village department, canceled the ERFD response, when he found the fire had largely run its course.

Chief Collette said firefighters put water on the smoking remains, using the dry hydrant on Ayers Brook, at the base of Peth Road, to fill tankers. Firefighters cleared the scene at 7:45 a.m.

Bob Simpson, whose home is across the road but not in view of his rental property, said his first clue that something was amiss was the sound of "Jake brakes" on a truck. Not expecting any truck deliveries at 5 a.m., Simpson looked out to see fire trucks on Peth Road and at the base of his drive. They were still looking for the fire site, which was a little beyond Simpson’s driveway.

Simpson noted the small house that burned was mostly empty, with the boiler off and pipes drained. An electrical circuit had been left on for lights, he said.

"There was no reason for it to catch on fire," he said.

Simpson said he believes the fire was set at the rear of the house, citing the curious fate of a refrigerator that had been on the ground floor.

The fridge, which ended up in the charred cellar, didn’t fall straight down, but apparently slid on a tilting floor before dropping down, towards the back side of the house.

Simpson said the building was insured and that he planned to rebuild a house on the lot.