RESIDENTS URGED TO HEED ARSON SAFETY TIPS AND TO REPORT ANY INFORMATION THAT WILL ASSIST ARSON INVESTIGATION

SOMERVILLE – As the arson investigation into recent house fires in
Somerville continues, Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone, Somerville Police Chief Thomas
Pasquarello, and Somerville Fire Chief Kevin Kelleher are urging residents to
remain vigilant in reporting any information that could assist the
investigation. They also ask that all community members please read and heed
arson prevention tips and safety tips posted to the City website’s homepage at www.somervillema.gov.

At a press conference today, City and State officials including
Mayor Curtatone and State Fire Marshal Stephen Coan provided the community with
an update on the ongoing investigation into recent fires that have occurred in
Somerville. Since June 27, 13 house fires have occurred, the most recent of
which occurred on Friday, Sept. 6, on Laurel Terrace and was immediately deemed
to be clearly arson. Five other suspicious fires remain under investigation and
four have been ruled accidental.

Somerville Public Safety officials are seeking information and
assistance from the community to assist the investigation of these fires, and
also urge all residents to carefully review and follow the specific arson
prevention and fire escape and safety tips below.  

“Our Police and Fire Departments are making use of every available
resource for the investigation into these fires, and I want to thank State Fire
Marshal Coan, the ATF and the FBI for their dogged dedication and assistance
with this effort. But we need the assistance of the community as well, both in
being our extra eyes and ears on the street and in taking some basic safety
precautions,” said Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone. “We have been more than fortunate
that to this date no one has suffered significant physical injury, and we want
to keep it that way.”

Somerville Police and Fire are aggressively pursuing a number of
leads and are continuing to work closely with both state and federal agencies
on this investigation. Regular patrols have also been increased. Mayor
Curtatone also announced today that a Somerville Arson Tip Hotline has been
created and the City of Somerville reward for any information leading to the
arrest and prosecution of any person involved with the setting of any of these
fires has been raised to up to $20,000, in addition to The Arson Watch Reward
Program, which is offering up to $5,000 (for a total of up to a $25,000) for
any information leading to the arrest and prosecution. The Somerville Arson Tip
Hotline number is 617-629-1847 (617-629-1TIP). The statewide Arson Hotline is 1-800-682-9229.

Residents are urged to use the arson prevention tips below, which
include locking all windows and doors and removing easily flammable items from
porches and outside the home such as upholstered furniture or yard waste. At
some of the arson and suspicious fires, access may have been gained via the
basement. At others, the fire was set outside the home.  “Please remain alert to your surroundings and
report any suspicious behavior or information to the police. If you see
something, say something,” said Chief of Police Thomas Pasquarello. “Sometimes
it’s a neighbor glancing out a window or a piece of information that seems
unimportant that can make all the difference in either preventing arson or
solving it afterward.”

Arson Prevention Tips and Fire Safety

Keep an Eye Out and Call It In: We Need the Community to
Remain Alert

• Report any
  suspicious behavior or persons to the Police Department immediately by
  calling 9-1-1.
• Report any
  smoke or fires to the Fire Department immediately by calling 9-1-1. Don’t assume someone else will call it
  in.

• Contact the
  Somerville Police with any tips regarding any of the fires under
  investigation. No tip is too small:
  • Call
    our Arson Tip line 617-629-1TIP ( 617-629-1847 )
  • Contact
    the statewide Arson Hotline at 1-800-682-9229
  • Text
    tips anonymously by texting to the number "TIP411" ( 847411
    ).  Put "617spd" at the beginning of your text message. If
    your message requires an emergency response PLEASE DO NOT TEXT and
    instead call 9-1-1.

Specific actions to help prevent possible arson:

• Remove
  overstuffed furniture from porches
• Remove all
  highly flammable items from outdoor areas close to your home, such as but
  not limited to:
  • piles
    of leaves or bags of yard waste
  • stacks
    of papers or recycling bins with paper/boxes
  • flammable
    liquids such as lighter fluid, gas, paint thinner, and other volatile
    liquids
  • candles
    including mosquito candles
  • charcoal,
    or grills with charcoal or gas cans
  • laundry
    (don’t leave it hanging overnight)
  • rags
    or oily rags
  • highly
    stuffed seat cushions
• Keep your
  home secure:
  • Lock
    all doors and windows including basement doors and windows
  • Lock
    your garage door (or remove flammable items from garage if it can’t be
    locked)
• Keep
  lighting on at night:
  • Leave
    both your front and back porch lights on overnight
• Do not store
  trash or recycling under your porch:
  • Keep
    it farther from the house or inside until your trash day

Do Not Become a Victim of Any Fire: Tips to protect
yourself, your family, and your home:

• Check batteries
  in smoke alarms and ensure they are operating.
• Have an
  escape plan and discuss it with your family or housemates: Plan two routes
  of escape from any room. Check the door handle of closed doors before
  opening. If it’s hot, use your alternate exit if possible.
• Pick a
  meeting spot safely away from the house.
• In the event
  of fire, exit immediately. Do not stop to collect any belongings. Consider
  putting valuable or irreplaceable items in a fire-proof box now so you
  will not be tempted to look for them when escaping.
• Know how to
  crawl away from a fire. When exiting, stay low because smoke rises. Smoke
  can weaken your ability to respond in an emergency or suffocate you.
• Educate your
  children. They are likely to hide in a closet or under a bed during a fire
  if they haven’t been told what to do.
• Do not
  reenter a burning building for any reason.

Please be sure to
share this important information with your neighbors, family and friends.