Fort Worth suspect tied to five fires set within a mile
FORT WORTH — A man was arrested in south Fort Worth early Friday on suspicion he set five fires overnight within a one-mile radius, targeting everything from various vehicles, to a trash bin, to a commercial structure, according to the fire department.
The incident is a “rarity,” with a round of apparently intentionally set fires within such a short distance, fire department spokesman Mike Drivdahl said over the phone. The motive of the suspect, whose name wasn't released, was unclear as of Friday morning.
Fort Worth firefighters and police officers detained the man around 3:30 a.m. at the last incident, a car fire in the 3600 block of Hemphill Street, Drivdahl said. The five fires, which didn't result in any injuries, occurred within roughly a mile of the intersection of Hemphill and West Berry streets.
The fire department isn't releasing the identity of the man at this time, Drivdahl said, and an investigation is underway.
“We're gonna dedicate all the resources necessary to make sure that, if this suspect did set these fires, that we work with the prosecutor's office and we do everything we can to help them convict them,” Drivdahl said. “We have had a rash of arson fires lately.”
Though the nature of these five fires was slightly unusual, he indicated the fire department is going to proceed with a typical arson investigation, looking at all of the incidents and collecting evidence.
The first fire occurred around 9 p.m. Thursday and involved a car, Drivdahl said. Then there was a trash bin fire, which he said was the hardest for firefighters to put out because it was filled with recycled cardboard. Firefighters had to move large cardboard bales and break them down.
The third fire of the night involved an RV, and that was followed by a commercial structure fire at the corner of Biddison and Alice streets, Drivdahl said. He was unsure if the business was vacant but noted no one was inside at the time.