Warren has three suspicious fires in nine hours

Staff report

WARREN

The city was hit by a rash of three fires in nine hours Monday night, all of them with suspicious origins.

The first one took place at 6:05 p.m. at 358 Charles Ave. SE in which two adults and two small children made it out safely from a fire that caused $43,000 in damage.

The fire started on the back porch and damaged the kitchen and dining room. A smoke detector in the basement was sounding when firefighters arrived.

“They lost everything,” city Fire Chief Ken Nussle said.

The American Red Cross put the family up in a motel. They were renters and had no renters’ insurance, Nussle said.

At 1:42 a.m. Tuesday, a fire destroyed a detached garage at a home at 2231 Stewart St. NW that had been unoccupied for a while, Nussle said. Amount of damage was $12,000.

The fire did not damage the house, but it damaged a neighbor’s fence.

At 2:40 a.m. Tuesday, a vacant house at 352 Austin Ave. SW went up in flames. The home was a total loss of $25,000.

A firefighter suffered a wrenched back in that fire, Nussle said.