Underage drinkers may have started two-day blaze
Underage drinkers may have started two-dayblaze
12 October 2007
published by www.seacoastonline.com
Newton, Usa — A slow-burning fire discovered last weekin the woods off Derby Lane in a remote area between New Boston Road and HeathStreet took two days to extinguish completely.
Kingston, Newton, East Kingston, Plaistow and Brentwoodfire departments sent forest units to assist.
Kingston Fire Chief Bill Seaman said his departmentresponded to a report of smoke last Thursday night and discovered a fire burningabout 600 feet into the woods across the railroad tracks.
“It appeared to be a peat-type fire which may havebeen burning partially downwards for some time,” Seaman said. “Weworked several hours that night and then had to return the next day to finish itoff.”
The remoteness of the blaze and its location across therailroad tracks required digging under the tracks to get the hoses close to thefire.
Seaman said that the fire, which was later determined tobe located in the town of Newton, occupied a 300-foot-square area and appearedto be burning for some time.
Newton Police Chief Lawrence Streeter said the siteappeared to be heavily used by underage drinkers. “It’s very remote andtherefore obviously of interest to young people looking to party out of sight,”Streeter said.
Streeter said after the fire, a resident on Derby Lanereported seeing a dozen young people with sleeping bags head towards the areatwo weeks ago, leaving in cars with Massachusetts plates that had been parkednear the tracks.
“Obviously, now that the site has been discovered,it will have to monitored,” said Streeter.
