VTS chapel fire ruled accidental

From ELO-

The Oct. 22 fire that quickly destroyed the chapel at Virginia Theological Seminary has been ruled accidental.
The U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) announced its findings Oct. 28. ATF's National Response Team, along with ATF special agents from Falls Church, Virginia, and Washington, D.C., worked with the Alexandria Fire Department to investigate the cause of the fire. The federal response is routine when a fire of this size occurs in a house of worship, the seminary and the ATF said.

The fire began in a trash can left near a heater in the sacristy, Susan Shillinglaw, VTS director of communication, told ENS.

The team of investigators removed the debris from the heavily damaged structure, took photographs, recovered fire debris from the scene for laboratory analysis and conducted more than 40 interviews throughout the campus, according to the ATF.

"It is clear that the fire was not caused by any deliberate or criminal act," the Very Rev. Ian S. Markham, VTS dean and president, said in a message posted on the VTS website. "Although the fire was caused by human agency, those involved took 'steps that any responsible person would have taken.' However, these steps were not sufficient to stop the catastrophe that followed."

More here-

http://www.episcopalchurch.org/79425_125486_ENG_HTM.htm