Sunday, January 25, 2015

ASSISTANT FIRE CHIEF: TWO NEWARK, OHIO FIRES APPEAR TO BE ARSON



ASSISTANT FIRE CHIEF: TWO NEWARK, OHIO FIRES APPEAR TO BE ARSON 





Sunday January 25, 2015




NEWARK, Ohio -- Firefighters from Newark and neighboring departments battled two house fires a block apart just south of downtown early Sunday morning.




Both fires appeared to be arson, said interim Newark Fire Chief Patrick Connor, who said investigators have not determined whether the two fires are related.




The first call came at about 6:30 a.m., and about 25 minutes later, the second house fire was reported, Connor said.




The houses on S. 4th and S. 5th streets both appeared to be vacant, he said. A neighbor of the house on S. 5th street said that the owner had been working recently to fix up the house.




Most houses in the area were built in the mid to late 1800s. It's a low-income, distressed neighborhood where many of the houses are rentals.




Connor said that both fires appeared to have started in the backs of the houses, and firefighters will continue to investigate.




There were no injuries in either fire.