Neighbors press Swansea select board for investigation after large permitted burn; homeowners and fire officials dispute scale and response

Dory Nast, a Matthews Road resident, told the Swansea select board that on April 10 neighbors called 911 after a large permitted burn near her property produced heavy smoke and a loud blast and that no fire department apparatus arrived.

"Multiple neighbors called 911 that night. They were told help was coming and no help ever arrived," Nast said at the board's public comment period. "I am demanding a full investigation of this incident and I want to know why 911 calls were ignored. Who made the decision not to respond?"

Several other neighbors described the same night as frightening. Bruce Bohan, who lives across the street from the burn site, said he saw someone "literally taking the can and sloshing it on" the pile and that the resulting blast rattled windows.

"It was a great big kaboom," Bohan said, describing what he believed was an accelerant-driven flare-up. "The fire got out of hand and luckily they got it under control by pushing dirt on it.">

Homeowners whose property was the permitted burn said they followed the town's permit process and that a visiting state forester subsequently inspected the site and…