Crime & Safety

PHOTOS: Two-Alarm Fire at Vaille and Augustus

"It's a bad one," said fire official.

A two-alarm fire at a two-and-a-half story home at the corner of Vaille Avenue and Augustus Road caused extensive damage to the 5,500 square-foot house.

The fire that started around 4:45 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 26, created flames that rose nearly 20 feet over the top of the single-family house at 47 Vaille Ave., said one neighbor who did not want to be identified. Fire crews from Lexington and nearby Bedford fought the fire until they were reportedly told to evacuate the interior of the 47-year-old house.

By 5 p.m., a second alarm had been struck and the received mutual aid from Arlington, Bedford, Burlington, Waltham and Hanscom Air Force Base, as a Belmont engine covered HQ and Winchester covered the . 

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An hour into the firefighting operations, fire personnel were still streaming water into the house under a flood of lights trained onto the structure. "It's a bad one," said a Bedford Fire Department member to a crew from Armstrong Ambulance.

According to Sgt. Christina Demambro, as of 7:15 p.m., there were no reported injuries to firefighters nor to the residents, who were at home at the time of the fire but outside by the time companies arrived to the scene. 

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The fire, which reportedly started in the front porch, had severely damaged the main house on Vaille Avenue, collapsing sections of the roof. Firefighters were sawing holes into the roof on the Augustus Road side to allow water to be placed into the structure. 

The State Police Fire Marshal’s Arson Unit was on the scene aiding with the investigaton, which Demambro expected would last well into the night. 

Lexington assessors records report that the house, valued at $1.6 million, is owned by James Cipriano since Feb. 2007. 

Check back on Patch for more information as it becomes available. 


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