Youth will spend evenings washing city fire trucks

Children playing with fire will wet the bed, the old wive's tale says.

Unfortunately, more often children playing with matches and lighters end up destroying property, burning themselves and sometimes killing others.

In the case of Monday's firebugs, one Butler youth will spend a week of evenings at the Butler Fire Department washing fire trucks.

Fire Chief Larry Christy, usually a mild-mannered man, was visibly angry Monday afternoon at the report of children setting fires on the porch of 404 Virginia Ave. in the city's Island neighborhood — angry about the tragedy that could have been.

The chief, a fire truck, ambulance and two Butler police officers responded to the 2 p.m. call made by a neighbor in an adjoining house.

Christy said 404 Virginia Ave. is under renovation and the child in question had matches and a lighter.

"So now he'll be reporting to the fire department at 6 p.m. tonight (Monday) and for the rest of the week to wash fire trucks," Christy said.