The South Hero home of Green Mountain Power President and CEO Mary Powell caught fire Tuesday evening and burned into the night.
Vermont State Police said a preliminary investigation indicates the fire may have been started by lightning. The fire is still under investigation.
Don Turner, chief of the Milton Fire Department, responded to the fire. His department was one of nine called in to help the South Hero Fire Department try to subdue the blaze. Turner said he saw more than a dozen trucks on the scene at one point.
The Burlington Free Press reports that four pets were killed in the fire at the $2 million lakefront home.
