Cause of fairgrounds fire may never be known, fire marshal says

When firefighters arrived the rear portion of the building was fully involved. (Rochester Fire photo)

ROCHESTER - The cause of a fire that tore through a portion of a Rochester Fairgrounds livestock building on Sunday will likely go down as undetermined after the city fire marshal said there's no clear evidence of arson or any human involvement.

Rochester Deputy Fire Chief and Fire Marshal Tim Wilder said on Tuesday that bearing any newfound incriminating evidence, the likelihood is that the cause of the blaze may never be known.

Wilder said the building did have electrical service at the time of the fire, but that when the fair was over in September all the fluorescent lights had been removed, and there was no evidence of an electrical fire.

He also said after Saturday's snowfall a careful inspection of the area showed no tracks - either human or vehicular - that would point to recent activity at the building by any individuals, suspicious or otherwise.

Sunday's nighttime blaze took out about a third of the building, whose portion farthest from Lafayette Street was fully involved when firefighters arrived around 10:15 p.m.

Wilder estimated damage to the building to be about $20,000.

He said it was unclear whether or not the building was insured. Attempts to reach fair manager Mark Perry were unsuccessful.