OLYMPIA, Wash. — After a string of early morning fires considered “suspicious” by Olympia Fire Department investigators, police arrested an Olympia man Monday in connection with two counts of arson.
Fire crews responded to two apartment complex fires and a church fire — all in the same neighborhood and within the space of under an hour and a half Monday morning.
Investigators said evidence linked the 22-year-old to a church and one of the apartment complexes that caught fire.
A police spokesperson said there is no clear motive to explain why the man allegedly started the fires.
According to the Olympia Fire Department, the first one started at Cambridge Court Apartments on Ninth Avenue Southwest just before 3 a.m.
That fire was contained to the complex’s community room.
About five blocks down Ninth Avenue, and a half-hour later, crews were dispatched to a fire on the ground floor of the Hidden Creek Community Church.
The third fire started around 4:15 a.m. at the nearby Fern Crest Apartments.
Based on investigator estimates, the Fern Crest damage was the costliest, an estimated $400,000.
"Everything's gone," said resident Corey Beede, whose minivan also was destroyed by the fire.
Most of the units were destroyed in the complex, causing the American Red Cross to help find new homes for the more than 20 residents.
“It just pisses me off that someone is able to light things on fire knowing people are inside,” resident Forrest Gilles said.
The fire at the church damaged the ground floor.
Lead Pastor Tim Heffer said that level is a total loss.
Destroyed in the fire were a classroom, a kitchen and thousands of dollars of food.
The church serves as a weekly food bank distribution site.
Heffer said his volunteers were working to restock the church’s food supply so the distributions can continue as scheduled on Wednesday.
“We can be generous whether we have a functioning building or not,” said Heffer.
Investigators say they connected the 22-year-old man to the fires at the church and at Fern Crest Apartments. All the fires are still under investigation.
RELATED: How to find a food bank in your area