Suspicious fires probed for arson

staff report

SALEM — There may have been 11 or more arson fires in Columbiana County since Sept. 23.

Cara Keithley, the chief of communications for the Ohio Department of Commerce, said Monday, “We are working with local officials to see if there are any similar fires that were not reported to us.”

The department includes the state fire marshal’s office.

Officials last week put the count of suspicious fires at eight, including from a barn, a camper and a home under construction.

Keithley said that not all of the fires have been ruled arson, but given the proximity and time line of the fires, that possibility has not been ruled out.

At least four of the fires have been ruled arson.

The suspicious fires ranged from East Liverpool to Hanoverton.

East Liverpool authorities have charged a man with setting fire to a vacant home. Keithley said that case is being checked to see if it was included in the possible arson cases.

A Blue Ribbon Arson award of up to $5,000 will be available for any information that will help lead the state to the person or persons responsible for the fires.

In 1973, the Ohio FAIR Plan Underwriting Association founded the Blue Ribbon Arson Committee to bring police, firefighters and the insurance industry together to combat arson.

Since 1978, the committee has issued 407 awards totaling $413,300 that have helped solve at least 481 fires. Some 105 of the cases were attempts to defraud the insurance industry that saved in excess of $4.4 million.