A property caretaker using a blowtorch to remove weeds caused a fire Monday afternoon at this home at 125 Second St., according to the Pittsfield Fire Department. The home was unoccupied and no one was injured.

A property caretaker using a blowtorch to remove weeds caused a fire Monday afternoon at this home at 125 Second St., according to the Pittsfield Fire Department. The home was unoccupied and no one was injured.

PITTFIELD — Firefighters on Monday quickly knocked down a structure fire on Second Street that was caused by person using a blowtorch to remove weeds from the property, according to a report by the Pittsfield Fire Department.

Someone the department referred to as a "property caretaker" came a bit too close to the 2 1/2 story, wood-frame building with the torch and ignited the siding, which then spread to the soffit and grew inside the siding and wall boards, the report said.

The building, a single-family residence at 125 Second St., was unoccupied and listed for sale, the report said. No one was injured in the fire, which was reported shortly after 5:30 p.m.

Damage was contained to siding and a few sheathing boards on the home's exterior, the report said, and water damage was minimal.

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