Fatal outdoor fire in Millbury under investigation – Sentinel and Enterprise

MILLBURY – An outdoor fire that claimed the life of a woman in Millbury Saturday evening remains under investigation, according to a statement from State Fire Marshal Jon Davine. Meanwhile, crews in Dunstable, Wilmington and Salem, Massachusetts were also battling fires this weekend.

On October 26 at approximately 8:20 p.m., a State Police trooper responded to a small brush fire in the area of ​​the Blackstone River Bikeway near Route 146. Once on scene, the trooper located the victim in an encampment, where a fire is suspected. to have arisen. He alerted the fire brigade, who extinguished the fire completely, as well as the police.

The victim, an adult, was pronounced dead at the scene. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner will determine the cause and manner of her death and conduct a formal identification procedure.

The trail remains open to the public. The Associated Press reported that the woman was found in an outdoor encampment where the fire is believed to have started.

The origin and cause of the fire are under investigation by the Millbury Fire and Police Department, state police assigned to the offices of the state fire marshal and the Worcester District Attorney’s Office.

Firefighters also responded to a barn fire in Dunstable on Saturday evening around 10:23 p.m., according to a statement from the Dunstable Fire Department. All residents of the nearby home were safely evacuated.

According to the Associated Press, Salem, firefighters were still battling a brush fire that started in a wooded area near a Walmart on Sunday.

State Fire Marshal Jon Davine’s office said the Statewide Fire Mobilization Plan (SFMP) was activated Sunday in support of the Salem Fire Department. The SFMP coordinates firefighting resources when local mutual aid has or will be exhausted. By bringing in staff and equipment from another region, it ensures that all communities retain sufficient resources to meet their daily needs.

Wilmington crews were battling wildfires Saturday, as were crews in southern New Hampshire, the Associated Press reported.

Massachusetts was issued a red flag warning on Saturday, meaning any outdoor fire could spread quickly and be difficult to extinguish. Also on Sunday, Massachusetts continued to experience an increased outdoor fire risk. The National Weather Service warned that the combination of drought and wind, with gusts up to 35 miles per hour, was expected to cause significant fire conditions, leading to the The likelihood that fires could grow quickly in dead and dry vegetation is high.

The office of State Fire Marshal John Davine contributed to this report.

Originally published: October 27, 2024 at 4:01 PM