Suspicious blazes in downtown Charleston reviewed

CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) — Fire officials are trying to determine if two fires set the same day in downtown Charleston are related to as many as 50 other suspicious fires set within the same half-mile area over the past decade.

Fire Marshal Mike Julazadeh told The Post and Courier of Charleston that a fire that damaged the porch of one home last week was intentionally set. He says a fire a few hours earlier destroyed a home about four blocks away and is still under investigation.

The latest fires have investigators taking another look at 50 other suspicious fires in downtown since 2002. The fires had mostly stopped after August 2009.

Last week’s fires followed the same pattern as many over the past decade, beginning on porches overnight in homes occupied by college students.

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Information from: The Post and Courier, http://www.postandcourier.com