Cause of Park Street Fire ‘Undetermined’

The Rehoboth Fire Department has released a statement about the Park Street Fire last February.

The statement posted Monday on the Department’s Facebook page said: “The joint investigation is wrapping up. While it found no evidence of foul play, the cause will be officially undetermined. The team of Rehoboth and State fire investigators could not rule out multiple potential accidental causes, including an electrical event or the combustion of oily rags, which you might have seen has caused several fires over the past few weeks.”

Fire Chief Frank Barresi told the Board of Selectmen the department’s response to the fire at 7 Park Street was swift.
‘The first unit was on scene in four minutes, the first engine was on scene in less than seven and the first tanker was on scene in eight,” Barresi said. “We never lost water throughout the course of that fire.”
The blaze destroyed the 60,000 square foot wood-frame building, which had housed several businesses, including Duvally Construction/Heritage Reality, Anawan Brewing, and House of Fitness. Two additional units were under construction to house a restaurant.
Barresi said there were no injuries reported. None of the businesses were occupied at the time. Only four buildings in Rehoboth have sprinkler systems, which is “not uncommon in other parts of the state,” Barresi noted. “There’s no guarantee a sprinkler system would have saved that building but there’s a real good chance it would have held it in check long enough for us to get there and put it out.”
A GoFundMe campaign to benefit Anawan Brewing Company raised $36,000.
Other local businesses in Massachusetts and Rhode Island also pitched in to help.
Attleboro’s Skyroc Brewery donated the proceeds of sales of their special Anawan Rock beverage to help Anawan Brewery to rebuild. Narragansett Beer donated 100 percent of their net sales at their Providence brewery to Anawan.