Body of man, IEDs found in Fitchburg apartment after fire
Investigators are still probing the cause of the blaze at 7 Beekman St.
Investigators found the body of a man and two explosive devices in an apartment among the wreckage of a fire at a Fitchburg condominium complex Monday.
The body was found on the third floor of the building at 7 Beekman St. underneath a collapsed roof, Worcester County District Attorney Joseph Early, Jr. said.
On Tuesday, Early’s office said the man has been identified by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner as Raymond L. Jerome, 59.
“The cause and origin of the fire have yet to be determined, although we did locate two, improvised explosive devices also known as IEDs in the apartment,” Early told reporters at a press conference Monday.
Near the devices, investigators also located propane tanks, he said.
Officials in Fitchburg provide an update into Sunday’s deadly multi-alarm blaze https://t.co/dy6BykBsHS https://t.co/Ci6CkJiF4P
— WCVB-TV Boston (@WCVB) September 23, 2019
The discoveries came after officials received reports of multiple explosions during the fire that broke out Sunday around 5:42 p.m.
Earlier on Monday, Early said a woman was rescued from a third floor window and about 50 people were displaced from their homes as a result of the blaze.
Officials were also probing reports of a missing person following the fire.
The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner was slated to perform an autopsy to determine the cause of death, Early said.
“We did make calls to his former place of employment to give them notification, just in an abundance of caution,” he said.
The initial investigation shows the two explosive devices detonated, according to Early. He said he could not speak to whether the propane tanks also exploded.
Asked about the intricacy of the explosives found, Early said he could not say how complex the devices were, “but it appeared that whoever put these together knew what they were doing.”
The gadgets were taken by the Massachusetts State Police Bomb Squad, he said. The federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives also assisted in the investigation at the scene Monday.
“This will unfold,” Early said. “I mean, the state police, the Fitchburg police, they’ve been asking a lot of questions. We’ve been getting answers throughout the day, but the one thing I know is when you’re rushed to anything on cases like this, you get it wrong. So we’re going to let them do their work and finish their investigation.”
