Fire at 29 Everett Street No Longer Under Investigation

 The Winchester Police and Fire Department have released information on the fire at 29 Everett Avenue on Wednesday, July 2013.

The fire was reported at 1:55 a.m.. When police and fire departments arrived, they saw a fire in the rear right corner of the home, with the kitchen area engulfed in flames. The sole occupant of the house was unharmed.

The fire department was unable to enter the kitchen area until after the work crews shored up the roof. Once they were able to get in, the Arson Investigators took two samples from the back mud room and the kitchen area after they detected a suspicious scent.

The samples were analyzed in the State Police Crime Lab and returned positive for gasoline. The technicians explained that the samples taken from the home returned unusually high with an actual footprint of gasoline.

An arson investigation team initially ruled the cause of the fire to be undetermined, but noted that some kind of accelerant was used where the samples were taken. Investigators also noted that the way the fire progressed was not consistent with an accelerant pour. 

As a result of these findings, this fire is no longer under investigation.