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It wasn't arson. It wasn't due to bad electrical wiring or children playing with matches.
The 2:05 p.m. Friday fire at 753 South CR 325 East, Wayne Township, was the result of the homeowner wanting to get rid of the house.
The house was in poor repair and the owner decided to burn it down, according to Warsaw Fire Chief Ken Shepherd.
Warsaw and Winona Lake fire departments responded to the "controlled burn" after a passerby noticed the fire and called it in to the sheriff's department.
Upon arrival, Shepherd said the abandoned house was already a loss and after learning the fire was intentionally set by the homeowner, the fire departments decided not to fight the fire but just keep the fire from spreading to neighboring properties. Telephone poles and grass in the area were watered down.
The fire took approximately 50 minutes. There were no injuries. The homeowner does not have insurance on the property. According to the fire department, the property owner is Jesse Megething, address unavailable.
Shepherd said the burn was unlawful, but that any action against the owner would have to be initiated by the Indiana Department of Environmental Management.
