Three Creswell teens charged with starting mill fire

Three Creswell boys — a 16-year-old and two 13-year-olds — have been charged with starting a fire that burned a lumber mill office and warehouse Sunday evening, as well as a string of other recent crimes, Lane County sheriff’s deputies said Wednesday.

The fire at Fore Lumber LLC also torched a tall evergreen tree and prompted a home’s evacuation, though large stacks of lumber remained unscathed, the Register-Guard reported.

Deputies also linked the three teens to a previous fire Oct. 8 at the same location, an Oct. 20 suspicious fire at Holt Park in Creswell and a recycling container fire the same day at Creswell Middle School, as well as some minor thefts, said sheriff’s Sgt. Carrie Carver.

The sergeant said the three teens have been cooperative with investigators. They were lodged at the county Juvenile Justice Center on charges including first- and second-degree arson, first-degree criminal mischief, reckless burning and first- and second-degree burglary

The city of Creswell contracts with the sheriff’s office for services inside the city limits.