DUNCAN Okla_ Nearly a month
after a vacant Duncan
home filled with a family's heirlooms was set on fire, police say Monday night in
the middle of the snowstorm, a house just two doors down also caught fire.
Police said an
off-duty firefighter was at a nearby gas station when he spotted smoke coming
from an abandoned home and called 911. Last month's fire was ruled an arson,
and this one remains under investigation. Detectives said they were able to
find the ignition source in Monday night's fire: a pile of burning newspaper.
They say
because it was so cold, someone could have been in the run-down home trying to
keep warm. They said they can't overlook the fact that they have two mysterious
fires along the same street.
Crime scene
tape still surrounds the first home, after police were called to investigate a
fire two weeks ago. They believe it was arson, and now they say their concerns
are growing. Another house ignited Tuesday, just two doors down from the first.
"We're
looking at the possibility that there is an arsonist in the area," Duncan Police
Detective Bill Fitzhugh said.
Police said
despite both fires being set to vacant homes, there's still a lot to lose.
"You still
have other neighbors, and fire could spread to those houses," Fitzhugh said. "You're
also putting firefighters' lives at risk anytime they enter a home. "They don't
know what's in the house. We don't know what's in the house. It could be
anything: gas, diesel, propane tanks. It could explode and injure or kill a
firefighter."
Until police
make an arrest, 12-year old Naomi Guajardo said she and her sisters are under
strict order from their parents to be watchful and to stay away from these
homes.
"They've just
been telling us to be careful when we go outside," Naomi said. "Don't go near
those houses or anything."
Neighbors said they have seen a suspicious man lurking near the homes. Last
month, police say their was a third vacant house fire just one block from Monday's.
All three remain under investigation.
