Over the course of three days, Somerville firefighters put out fires in four homes, two cars, one construction site and a cement mixer.
None of the fires, except the incident involving the two cars, are considered suspicious. And none are thought to be connected to a string of fires that broke out in Somerville over the summer. Four of those summer fires were determined to be the result of arson, and several remain under investigation.
Fire number 1
The first fire broke out Sunday at 9:02 p.m. at 45 Kidder Ave., where a mulch fire had spread to the first-floor porch, according to an email from Deputy Chief Charles Breen of the Somerville Fire Department.
Fire number 2
The second fire took place at 1:56 a.m. Monday at 11 Oakland Ave. A fire on the second-floor porch had spread to an exterior wall, and firefighters had to open up several walls to extinguish the fire, Breen's email said.
Fire number 3
At 1:14 a.m. Tuesday, firefighters were called to Union Square to put out two car fires. The fires were intentionally set, according to Somerville Fire Chief Kevin Kelleher, who said the fire department and Somerville Police Department were investigating the incident. They were not considered to be connected to this summer's arson's, Kelleher said.
Fire number 4
Later Tuesday morning, at 10:44 a.m., firefighters responded to Ivaloo and Harrison streets, where a cement mixer snagged overhead electrical lines, pulling down a utility pole and ripping electrical wires off the home at 3 Harrison St., according to Breen's email.
The live wires fell on the truck, causing it to be "energized," which resulted in two fires erupting in the truck, one near the motor for the mixer, the other between the two rear wheels. Firefighters used dry chemical extinguishers to put out the flames, the email said.
What's more, the driver of the truck was stuck inside the cab for 20 minutes, according to the email, which says the driver wasn't let out until NSTAR came and killed electrical power in the area.
Fire number 5
Soon after the cement-mixer incident, a small fire broke out in the Assembly Row construction site, where a new movie theatre is being built, according to Boston.com. At about 1:30 p.m. sparks from a welding project fell on a pile of cardboard, which caught on fire, the news website reported. It said a firefighter on detail at the construction site was able to put out the fire quickly, but he called for backup as a precaution.
Fire number 6
At 11:06 p.m. Tuesday, firefighters responded to a third-floor electrical fire at 72 Line St. Firefighters had to open up part of the ceiling, and electricity was shut off to the apartment, according to Breen's email.
Fire number 7
Finally, on Wednesday, at about 8:48 a.m., firefighters responded to a second-floor porch fire at 99 Porter St., Breen's email said.
Another reason not to smoke
According to the email, the fire department believes all three porch fires—at 45 Kidder Ave, 11 Oakland Ave. and 99 Porter St.—were caused by "improper disposal of smoking materials."
The fire department reminds people to property dispose of cigarette butts. Throw them in a metal container filled with sand. Don't throw them in a potted plant; the peat and dead plant material can start a fire. Don't throw them into mulch or vegetation. Again: fire.
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