Boardman house damaged by fire may have been meth lab

Staff report

BOARDMAN

A house damaged in a fire might have been a methamphetamine laboratory though that’s not yet confirmed, said Fire Chief George Brown.

A fire at a home in the 6600 block of Glenwood Ave., reported to firefighters at 4:14 p.m. Saturday, caused damage to the basement, said fire Capt. Pat Romeo.

The materials found in the house are undetermined but could have been used to make meth, Brown said.

A fire investigator and a clean-up company returned to the house Wednesday afternoon, Romeo said. While moving debris, a container “starting hissing and smoking a little bit,” he said. “We were concerned with what it was.”

The fire department called the Mahoning County HazMat team to the house to investigate, and had police there with a search warrant to remove items from the house.

The investigation into the material found and the cause of the fire is ongoing.