STATE OF VERMONT

DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY

VERMONT STATE POLICE

NEWS RELEASE

      

CASE#: 22B3004385

TROOPER: Det. Sgt. Matthew Hill                                               

STATION: Shaftsbury Barracks – Fire and Explosion Investigation Unit                

CONTACT#: (802)442-5421

 

DATE/TIME: December 2, 2022 – Time of Call: 3:02 AM

LOCATION: 78 Grinka Road Readsboro, VT, VT

INCIDENT: Fatal Fire Investigation

 

VICTIM: Female - Identification pending

Age: 

CITY, STATE OF RESIDENCE:

 

SUMMARY OF INCIDENT:

On December 2, 2022, at approximately 3:02 AM the Readsboro Fire Department was dispatched to a structure fire at a single-family residence on Grinka Road.  When fire crews arrived, they discovered the structure fully involved in fire.  Defensive firefighting actions were taken, and the fire was extinguished.   

 

During Fire Chief Adam Codogni’s assessment of the scene, he learned a female occupant was not accounted for and believed to be somewhere within the fire scene.  Chief Codogni contacted Department of Public Safety Fire and Explosion Investigation Unit and requested assistance in locating any victims within the structure and to determine the origin and cause of the fire event. 

 

Members of the Department of Public Safety Fire and Explosion Investigation Unit responded to the fire scene and conducted a scene search.  This search was supported by Urban Search and Rescue (USAR VT-TF1).  A deceased female was located in the kitchen near the main entrance to the home.  The victim’s remains were sent to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Burlington where an autopsy will determine the manner and cause of death examination as well as verifying the victim’s identity. 

 

The extensive amount of damage limited the investigators in their ability to determine the origin and cause of the fire event, however the fire does not appear to be the result of a criminal act.  The homeowner, who was not at home at the time of the fire, will be assisted by his family the Red Cross.

 

The home is valued at approximately $150,000.00 with an additional $20,000 in contents and was not covered by insurance.  As more information becomes available it will be released to the public. 

 

Det. Sergeant Matthew Hill

VT State Police

Fire and Explosions Investigations Unit

Cell – (802)585-6412

Office – (802)878-7111

Email – matthew.hill@Vermont.gov

 

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