Fire officials are saying an overnight fire at a local pet store may have been a possible act of "animal terrorism."
NewsCenter 5's Gail Huff reported that the fire at the Boston Tropical Fish and Reptile store at 243 Monsignor O'Brien Highway broke out about 10 p.m. Wednesday and the fire chief said it did not look like an accident.
Fresh grafitti scrawled on the building in black spray paint said "No More Exploitation of Animals."
In the fire, two turtles and six snakes were killed. The Animal Rescue League of Boston took away the animals that survived the blaze.
"There were several snakes alive, several turtles, five or six white rats. We even took the crickets out. We've taken a lot of the fish out but we're going to go back in when it's actually more light and try to get the rest of the fish out," Alan Borgal of the Rescue League said.
Arson investigators have been called in to determine whether the fire was deliberately set.
"Animal activists don't kill animals and sort of terrorism type of stuff so I don't know whether that's just a ploy but, again, that's for the state police and the fire marshal's office and the Cambridge Fire Department to make those decisions," Borgal said.
He said the interior of the store was unsanitary and did not appear to be up to code. Fire officials were waiting for a New England Aquarium crew to come and take away the saltwater fish. Exotic fish and reptiles, however, do not do well in stressed conditions and Borgal said there's a possibility they won't survive the effects of the blaze.
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