Investigators said surveillance video shows Theresa Abichaker, of West Roxbury, setting a clothing donation box on fire and then taking off.
No one was hurt and the sprinkler system extinguished the fire. The Westboro Fire Department responded to the scene and confirmed the fire was out.
Police searched the area, using drones and K9s to find the suspect. She is facing four charges and was ordered to have a mental health evaluation.
There were no injuries from a fire at the law enforcement center in Lawrence late Tuesday.
Just before 11p.m. crews responded to a fire alarm at the Douglas County Judicial and Law Enforcement Center at 111 East 11th Street in Lawrence, according to Fire Chief Richard Llewellyn.
This facility houses several Douglas County departments, including the District Attorney, Emergency Communications Center (ECC), Court Services and the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office.
While initial units were responding, the incident was upgraded to a “Confirmed Structure Fire” and additional resources were dispatched.
First responders encountered significant smoke in the basement of the building. Following a thorough search in low visibility conditions, firefighters located a fire that was contained by a single activated fire sprinkler head.
Crews put the fire out and then searched the rest of the building for fire extension and to ensure that no victims were present.
Douglas County’s Emergency Communications Center (ECC) continued to operate throughout this incident, both receiving incoming 911 calls and dispatching resources as appropriate. Dispatchers monitored ongoing fire operations in the building and worked through an audible fire alarm which remained activated for an extended time period.
Investigators determined the fire occurred in the jury deliberation room for the Division 7 Court Room in the basement of the Douglas County Judicial and Law Enforcement Center.
The room had experienced water damage from a sprinkler head that was damaged during recent freezing temperatures. The fire was determined to be accidental due to an electrical/mechanical malfunction of a fan that had been left running in the room to assist with the drying process. No injuries were reported.
Crews responding to a report of a fire at the police station on Main Street around 8:20 p.m. found a smoldering fire being held in check by the building’s sprinkler systems and heavy smoke in the building, according to Westboro Fire Chief Patrick Purcell.
The police station was evacuated.
Firefighters quickly extinguished the fire and ventilated the building.
No one was injured. Policing operations, including patrol, remain operational.
After a search, which included police K-9 units and police drones, a person of interest was located and taken into custody. That person’s name is not being released.
There was minimal fire damage to the building, but the sprinkler system caused significant water damage. Purcell estimated the damage at $250,000.
A fire at the Burlington Police Department was intentionally set, authorities say.
The Burlington Fire Department was dispatched Monday morning around 2 a.m. to the headquarters of the Burlington Police Department at 1 North Ave.
A fire had been set in the lobby, according to the police department, by Stephen A. Romprey, 62, who said later when he was questioned that he was making a point. He set fire to paper in the vestibule which is the only part of the police station that remains open at night. He was taken into custody and charged with second degree arson and reckless endangerment.
By the time fire crews arrived on scene the fire had been put out by the building’s automatic sprinkler system. Due to the amount of smoke the fire had produced, crews evacuated workers from the Emergency Communications Center, which was in a different part of the building. An emergency plan was activated to relocate the dispatch services so that 911 calls were not disrupted.
The fire and sprinkler system caused thousands of dollars in fire and water damage to part of the building, according to Burlington Police Chief Jon Murad. The water from the sprinkler flooded floors in multiple areas. About three hours after the evacuation, the Emergency Communications Center was able to operate out of the BPD building once again.
The police department is considering locking the doors to the vestibule as a result even though it includes a phone the public can use to alert authorities and a warm space that some unhoused use at night. Murad said the department is considering putting a phone on the exterior of the building.
This was the second in about a week’s time that Burlington emergency responders were targeted. On Nov. 5, an ambulance was stolen while on a call, driven about half a mile and crashed into a parked car.
A Colchester Fire District building is closed because of damage from an early morning fire Friday.
The Colchester Fire Department says it responded to the District #2 building just after midnight for a sprinkler/water flow alarm. They say this building shares a parking lot with the Mallets Bay station on Church Road. When they got there, the fire was showing from the roof. Crews say thanks to properly placed sprinkler heads, the fire was able to be contained.
Because of water damage in the office, the building will be closed for an unknown amount of time, but they can still be reached by phone for water-related emergencies.
The cause is currently under investigation but is not considered suspicious.
The incident unfolded just before 3 p.m. Tuesday when firefighters responded to a fire alarm at a building at 42804 SE 172nd St. in North Bend. Turns out that’s the address of Eastside Fire’s Station 88 in the Wilderness Rim area – a volunteer station that is not staffed full time.
Smoke was billowing from the building when crews arrived on scene. The flames were extinguished, and firefighters discovered that the flames had erupted from an ambulance parked inside the building’s apparatus bay.
The station’s sprinkler system prevented the blaze from spreading.
Fire officials say no one was in the building when the fire started, and it’s unclear why the ambulance burst into flames.
