BRIGHTON — Police are investigating a suspicious fire that damaged two log skidders in Brighton.
Kenny Messier called police on Friday to report that two of his log skidders had burned on Gideon Mills Road.
The skidders had self-extinguished and therefore the Brighton Fire Department had not been contacted.
Police say nobody noticed the skidders while they were burning due to the remote area.
The skidders had been parked in along a Class IV portion of Gideon Mills Road since March 17.
Messier Logging, based out of Irasburg, said they had stopped logging operations at that time due to the spring thaw and soft ground.
When Messier responded to the area on Friday both log skidders had burned.
One skidder was a 1996 John Deere and is considered nearly a total loss, and the other was a 1982 John Deere which suffered moderate damage.
Investigators say the cause of the fires remains under investigation but is considered suspicious.
They believe that the fires most likely occurred within the past week.
Anyone with information regarding the fire is asked to contact Det. Sgt. Michael LaCourse at the Derby Barrack at 802-334-8881, or Brighton Police Chief Jeffrey Noyes at 802-723-4322.
You can also contact the Vermont Arson Tip Award Program(VATAP) hotline at 1-800-32-ARSON.
The VATAP will pay up to a $5,000 reward for information leading to an arrest.
