Official: Ballpark fire was set on purpose

OLD ORCHARD BEACH – A fire that damaged Old Orchard Beach’s abandoned baseball park was set on purpose, an official said Friday.

Firefighters were called at about 5:30 p.m. Thursday to The Ballpark, where the skyboxes at the top of the stadium were engulfed in flames, said Deputy Fire Chief Normand Gagnon. Firefighters were at the scene for about two hours.

Several fires were set, but only one caught hold, Gagnon said. The Old Orchard Beach Fire Department and the State Fire Marshal’s Office are investigating.

The town-owned ballpark was built in the early 1980s and was the home to minor league baseball teams for several years. It later became a venue for music concerts, but it hasn’t been used in many years.

Gagnon said the stadium has become a target for vandals, who have broken into boarded-up concession stands and skyboxes.