Fire destroyed a house on Quenames Road in Chilmark on Sunday, April 11. The owner, George Rivera of New York, had been at the summer house over that weekend making repairs, but left on Saturday evening. According to Chilmark fire chief David Norton, a report was received about 9:15 am, but by the time fire trucks made their way to the house, it was totally involved in flames. Under mutual aid agreements, tanker trucks from Aquinnah and West Tisbury assisted Chilmark, and Tisbury covered for West Tisbury. The fire was out about noon.
Chief Norton told The Times that investigators from up-Island fire departments and an agent of Mr. Rivera’s insurance company have been on the scene, but there is so little left of the building that the cause, officially “under investigation,” may never be known. Mr. Norton said that Mr. Rivera had recently made improvements, such as new windows and appliances.
