HAMILTON — A juvenile suspect confessed Thursday to setting a July 25 warehouse fire on Laurel Avenue — one that burned hot enough to melt the shutters off of nearby houses and high enough for people 15 miles away to snap pictures of the billowing smoke.
The Hamilton Fire Department did not disclose the suspect’s name, age or the charges he would face in juvenile court.
Despite the hours-long, six-department struggle to contain and douse the fire on July 25, no one was injured.
The warehouse had been abandoned, according to Hamilton fire Chief Mark Mercer, and was a known “problem building.” Some neighbors had initially guessed the firestarter was a vagrant.
“I’ve never seen flames that big, the smoke went so high, the sky was orange ... It was like something out of a horror movie," neighbor Harlee Senters said. "It was so scary.”
