Authorities charge homeless man with arson in Springfield fire; Park Street building was set for demolition
Updated Feb 12, 2021;
Posted Feb 12, 2021
This building at 24 Park St. in downtown Springfield, which was set to be demolished, was damaged in a fire Feb. 10, 2021. (Don Treeger / The Republican file photo)
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SPRINGFIELD A suspect was arrested by Springfield authorities Thursday in connection with a fire that damaged a derelict downtown building the day before.
John Patrick Doherty, 35, whose last known address was in Darmouth, was arrested and charged with arson of a building after fire investigators and Springfield police detectives identified him from video surveillance footage and eyewitness statements.
Springfield fire destroys Sixteen Acres home
Updated Jan 27, 2021;
Posted Jan 27, 2021
1/27 - The remains of a home at 2490 Wilbraham Road following an early morning fire. The building is considered a complete loss.
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SPRINGFIELD A fire that started early Wednesday in an unoccupied home on Wilbraham Road in Sixteen Acres has left the building a total loss, according to a fire official.
Capt. Drew Piemonte, aide to Fire Commissioner Bernard J. Calvi, said no one was injured in the 4 a.m. fire at 2490 Wilbraham Road.
The home was unoccupied and in the process of being renovated at the time of the fire, he said.
Fears aired as search continues for cause of Springfield church fire
Updated Dec 31, 2020;
Posted Dec 31, 2020
State Rep. Bud L. Williams (left) and Bishop Talbert Swan II stand in front of the Martin Luther King Presbyterian Church which was badly damaged in a fire on Monday. (Jeanette DeForge/Republican staff)
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SPRINGFIELD As investigators search for the cause of a suspicious fire that heavily damaged the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Presbyterian Church on Monday, anxiety continues to grow in the community, especially among members of historically Black churches.
People have been calling local leaders to air concerns about the blaze and the fact they still have no answers about the cause, said state Rep. Bud L. Williams, D-Springfield.