Arson Possible Source of Veterans Park Brush Fire

Two fires burned for several hours in the woods behind Veterans Park on Crystal Street Thursday afternoon before authorities were able to contain the blazes.

Both fires were along trails in the woods behind the park, leaving authorities questioning whether they were set on purpose. Those suspicions were heightened when Harrison Fire Chief Dino Del Signore found a half empty container of Zippo lighter fluid near one of the fires.

"(The fire) is obviously suspicious in nature, it's all along the trail," said Del Signore. "There's a big trail that goes through here and the starting points of all the brush fires—well the two—are at the trail."

Del Signore gave the bottle of lighter fluid to the Harrison Police, who were also at the scene.

Harrison firefighters got the call at 2:08 p.m. after neighbors spotted smoke behind the Louis M. Klein Middle School. The smoke eventually led firefighters to the woods behind the park. The fire had been burning for several hours before it was called in, according to Del Signore.

The original fire was about 300 feet wide and flames reached as high as 25 feet at one point, according to Del Signore. While responding to the first fire, which was about 600 feet into the woods, firefighters spotted a second, smaller, brush fire in another part of the trail—this one about 100 feet in diameter. Firefighters at the scene had to put out the smaller fire before returning to the larger one.

No one was injured and the fires were deep enough in the woods that they did not threaten any homes in the area. But the fire was intense in some spots and several trees in the woods were completely engulfed in flame upon arrival. Battling the blaze was also made more difficult by the layers of dried brush on the ground.

One tree was completely engulfed in flames and gutted by fire by the time the first responders arrived.

"It was like a chimney, it just kept burning through the inside and it took it out," said Harrison First Assistant Chief Nick Cusumano. "It's like a fireplace."

All visible flames were extinguished in the woods by 5 p.m., but Del Signore said it would take at least another hour to make sure all ground-level fire was completely out.

"It's so deep underneath," he said. "There's so much brush, leaves and then mulch and everything. You kick it around and the flame will just pop up but you won't see it."

On July 2, an early morning brush fire near the same location kept authorities at the scene for several hours. That fire was caused by the dry weather but was difficult to put out because of the heavy debris on the ground.

The Village of Mamaroneck Fire Department responded to the scene and also had more equipment standing by. The Rye Fire Department was standing by in the Harrison Fire Department. A Westchester County airplane also circled the area for about 30 minutes to check for more brush fires, but did not spot any.

Firefighters were rotated in and out of the woods and provided with water to fight dehydration as air temperatures in Harrison reached the mid 80s during the afternoon.

"They're doing the best they can," said Del Signore. "The guys are working hard."