Electricity caused Monticello fire

MONTICELLO, Ind. (WLFI) - An electrical problem has been pinpointed as the cause of the fire that destroyed the Hall's Mall warehouse on East Marion Street in Monticello. 

The fire broke out on the evening of Tuesday, October 27.  The fire continued burning for hours, and hot spots prevented investigators from getting inside the building immediately.  Heavy rainfall on Friday pushed the investigation back to November 2.

Monticello Fire Chief Shane Swaim said Indiana State Police took him over the fire in a helicopter when the fire was contained.  Swaim said a hole in the building's roof indicated where the fire originated.  On Monday, investigators used that information to search for the exact cause of the fire.

Indiana State Fire Marshal Assistant Chief of Investigations Fred Sumpter said, "We got it down to a three phase electrical system.  It failed. There's a bolt that goes over the wires and it causes a resistance over time." 

Sumpter said that resistance led to a short in the system, which caused an arc, igniting the fire.