House fires ruled arson in St. Augustine

ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. — Investigators ruled three fires in St. Augustine Monday as arson, according to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The fourth fire is still under investigation.

Firefighters from the St. Augustine Police Department and St. Johns County Fire Rescue responded around 3:25 a.m. to a fire on Cordova Street, about a block south of King Street. The building partially collapsed, according to SJCFR.

SJCFR says it is unknown if anyone was in the building at the time of the fire.

At 3:27 a.m., a second 911 call came in about a residential fire on Saragossa Street, which is a couple blocks away from Ketterlinus Elementary School. Firefighters were able to get this fire under control within minutes, said SJCFR.

No one was in home at the time of the fire.

SJCFR says it is unknown at this time if the fires are related.

Firefighters responded to a third fire at home around 4:40 a.m., said SJCFR. The home was on Park Place, in the Lincolnville neighborhood, which is less than a mile away from the Codova Street fire.

Crews are dealing with multiple downed power lines and asked the Florida Power & Light to cut off power to the neighborhood.

The home was destroyed. SJCFR says crews worked to protect adjoining homes, where one was reported to have been damaged by fire and another received cosmetic damage from the heat.

Firefighters were sent to a fourth fire on Codova Street. According to SJCFR, crews were able to get to this fire quickly thanks to proactive police work. Some damage to the building was reported.

No one was reported injured in any of the incidents.

The State Fire Marshal is investigating the fires.

Investigators say they are looking for people suspected in the fires according to witnesses.

Anyone who has information pertaining to these crimes, you can call Crime Stoppers at 1-888-277-8477 (TIPS). You may be eligible for a reward of up to $1000.

WJAX