Mesopotamia man charged after brush fire heads toward his barn

Staff report

NEWTON FALLS

John H. Kempf, 61, of state Route 87 in Mesopotamia Township was arraigned Thursday in Newton Falls Municipal Court on one count of open burning after firefighters were called to his home May 25 for a large brush fire.

A passerby called 911 at 9:24 p.m., reporting a large brush fire heading toward Kempf’s barn, according to a report from the Trumbull County Sheriff’s Office.

The Mesopotamia Fire Department and two other departments extinguished the fire, which was produced by lighting a pile of debris about 30 feet by 25 feet.

Kempf told officers he contacted the Mesopotamia Fire Department in advance about conducting a controlled burn on the pile and that the fire department was supposed to arrive at 7 p.m. that day.

When the fire department did not show up, he set the fire at 7:30 p.m., Kempf said.

However, the Mesopotamia fire chief advised deputies that he told Kempf not to set the fire because it needed to be inspected first, a report said.

Kempf was booked into the Trumbull County jail Thursday after the hearing and released on a personal recognizance bond, meaning he didn’t have to pay anything. He returns to court at 11 a.m. Thursday.