Suspicious Fire May Be Attempted Murder/Suicide

"LAWRENCE, MA — A woman was killed and a man seriously injured in a fire Friday in what officials are calling a murder suicide at a senior housing complex in Lawrence...

"The fire broke out before 11 a.m. at the Rita Hall complex at 490 Hampshire St. and was contained to one unit.

"`They knocked the fire down. There was not a whole lot of fire, but there was a good amount of smoke and heat. In the process of doing that, they came across the victim,` Lawrence Fire Department Chief Jack Bergeron said.

"Officials said the woman was in her 50s. Police are investigating the incident as a murder suicide, but did not indicate which of the fire victims may have been the assailant, according to NewsCenter 5's Michele McPhee.

"`A man found outside was suffering from burns,` Lawrence Police Department Chief John Romero. `We believe those injuries were from the apartment. We believe he was in the apartment.`

"He was taken by medical flight to a hospital in Boston. Neither of the victims' names have been released.

"`The woman is not on the lease. Perhaps, it may be a relative of her who was on the lease,` Romero said.

"Residents were temporarily evacuated to the Lawrence Senior Center.

"`I live on the second floor, and someone knocked on my door and alerted me,` one resident said.

"The cause of the fire is under investigation."

From WCVB...