Arson in Austin

The 154-year-old Governor's mansion is nearly destroyed early this morning by an arsonist:

An official close to the investigation said agents determined the fire was a criminal act after reviewing footage from security cameras. A national response team from the U.S. Department of Justice arrives Monday to help dig through the wreckage for clues.

No one was injured in the four-alarm blaze, which engulfed the historic landmark and sent orange flames billowing from the front door and second story terrace.

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Department of Public Safety security officers, who stay on the property, were alerted to the fire by a tripped smoke alarm. An officer went to examine the cause, saw flames coming through the front of the house and immediately called the Austin Fire Department about 1:45 a.m.

By the time fire trucks arrived a few minutes later, the fire had made its way into the attic space. Firefighters trained fire hoses from all four directions on the exterior of the house in an effort to save it.

More than 100 firefighters battled the blaze for hours. Though the blaze had been extinguished by an 11 a.m. press conference, firefighters could be seen hosing down remaining hotspots.

“What has been lost today can never be replaced,” said governor’s press secretary Robert Black, citing damage from fire, water and smoke. “It’s an extraordinary amount of loss.”

I left the state capital around nine this morning without turning on the teevee or checking the news online. I drove right past downtown Austin without a clue as to the tragedy -- in historical proportions -- of what happened today. When I got home around noon and booted up the home PC is when I learned about it.

State officials were unable to estimate Sunday’s financial loss. They said the silver lining was that all art work, furniture and historical artifacts had been removed as part of the renovation, which included extensive asbestos removal and replacing virtually all the plumbing. The work began last September. ...

Efforts to determine the cause of the blaze were stymied Sunday morning by fears that the roof would collapse. But investigators found telling clues by reviewing surveillance cameras, and by interviewing security personnel, bystanders and some downtown residents.

“They indicated there was somebody here who potentially set the fire,” Mr. Maldonado said.

A picture of the mansion from 2006: