“Something is not right” Perry Township man, 64, dies in intentionally set fire
Kia Mull spent more than $100 on a Lyft ride from Akron to check on her friend William “Bill” McGuire in Perry Township.
Her friend of more than 20 years was supposed to pick her up from work Monday afternoon, but he never responded to her text messages. And all her calls were going to his voicemail. He also didn’t send his usual morning text message that told her when he woke up.
When Mull arrived at McGuire’s Fourth St. NW home on Monday afternoon, she found the windows and doors of his two-level brick house boarded with plywood. McGuire’s car was parked in the driveway.
McGuire's neighbors told her that her 64-year-old friend had died in a fire at the home that began around 10 a.m. that morning.
“I can’t believe this happened to him,” Mull said Tuesday during a phone interview with The Canton Repository. “… I just feel so bad because he was such a good, good friend.”
State fire official: Perry fire was intentionally set
Brian Peterman, fire and explosion investigations assistant bureau chief for the State Fire Marshal’s Office, said Tuesday the state has ruled that the fire at 4855 Fourth St. NW was an incendiary fire, which means it was intentionally set.
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He said state investigators continue to work with the Perry Township police and fire departments and the Stark County Coroner’s Office to gather additional information. He did not say why investigators believe the fire was set intentionally or identify any suspects.
Stark County coroner investigator Tammy Wilkes said the office is awaiting X-ray results before it determines McGuire's cause of death.
Perry Fire Chief Larry Sedlock said the fire appeared serious when crews arrived at the scene around 10 a.m. Monday.
"There was a lot of (heavy) smoke, but no real high flames," he said.
In addition to Perry, firefighters from Canton, Canton Township, Plain Township, Erie Valley and Massillon were called out, Sedlock said.
Firefighters were at the scene for about three hours.
On Tuesday, the house had visible damage to its windows, the front door, roof and garage door.
Neighbors Madelyn Tucke and Bobby Davis said they were asleep when the Fourth Street NW fire broke out.
Tucke said she saw fire engines and emergency vehicles parked outside the home later in the day.
McGuire's friend believes 'something is not right'
Mull said McGuire had retired from working at ExxonMobil and was the father of two grown daughters. She described him as the type of man who would help anybody, including those recently released from prison with no place to go.
She believes McGuire was “worried about something” starting a few months ago because he installed security cameras around his house, and then upgraded them a few weeks ago. She said his phone would ding whenever someone walked past the camera outside.
“Something is not right,” Mull said.
The Perry Township fire was one of 21 fires in Ohio over the holiday weekend, state fire officials said Tuesday. Ten Ohioans died because of the fires, making it the deadliest Christmas weekend for fires in Ohio on record.
Massillon Independent staff writer Steven Grazier contributed to this article.
Reach Repository staff writer Kelli Weir at 330-580-8339 or kelli.weir@cantonrep.com.
On Twitter: @kweirREP
This article originally appeared on The Repository: Fatal Perry Township house fire was intentionally set, state says
