Fire Tears Through Fairhaven Landscaping Company
FAIRHAVEN (CBS) – Fire gutted a landscaping company in Fairhaven Wednesday morning, but there's no indication yet that it's connected to a series of arsons in southeastern Massachusetts.
Firefighters were called to the G. Bourne Knowles and Company on Huttleston Avenue around 7:30 a.m. after flames broke out in an antique barn in the complex.
No one was hurt, but the damage was extensive. Most of the offices and storage area were destroyed.
Firefighters were able to prevent the fire from reaching a building connected to the barn that was full of landscaping chemicals.
The cause of the fire is still not known, but investigators said the old barn did have electricity.
19 other fires in the region since mid-September have been ruled arson, but all of the fires were in vacant buildings and were set late at night. The latest fire was not.
Still, after 19 arson fires in the past two months, residents and firefighters south of Boston are on edge.
State fire officials announced a $5,000 reward Wednesday for information leading to the arrest of the arsonist.
