Corinth fire blamed on electrical problem

CORINTH – A state fire investigator concluded Thursday that a fire that destroyed a farm storage barn was accidental and most likely was caused by an electrical malfunction.

“The building’s electrical system cannot be ruled out as the cause of the fire,” Sgt. Tim York of the State Fire Marshal’s Office said Thursday about the findings of the investigator.

York said the fire burned the barn at Thomas Farm on Garland Road so extensively that it left little for authorities to review so that the investigator couldn’t say with 100 percent certainty what caused the fire.

The fire appeared to have started in the electrical service entry area, and the investigator found nothing to suggest anything suspicious.

“There was nothing to indicate that it wasn’t an accidental fire,” York said by telephone.

The fire was so intense that it melted the headlights of vehicles 120 feet away, Corinth Fire Chief Scott Bragdon said Tuesday.

Paul Thomas, son of the farm’s owner, Frank Thomas, who is chairman of the Corinth Board of Selectmen, said Wednesday that two planters, a truck and some snowmobiles were destroyed in the fire.

Frank Thomas was getting ready to harvest squash and potatoes and now will have to look elsewhere to store the vegetables. None of the harvesting equipment was damaged, Paul Thomas said.

The building and equipment had an estimated value between $150,000 and $200,000, and the farm was insured, Thomas said.