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Manchester, N.H. hit by three arson fires

E-mail|Link|Comments () May 30, 2009 02:06 PM

By Emma Rose Johnson, Globe Correspondent

Three arson fires were set in Manchester, N.H. during two-hour period stretching from Friday night into this morning, authorities said.

A three-alarm fire caused extensive damage to a vacant building at 12:30 a.m. today, said Fire Chief James Michael. Michael said an incendiary device was used to start the fire, which swept through the second and third floors and the roof of the Concord Street building. It took firefighters almost four hours to control the flames. Fire crews managed to stop the blaze from spreading to an adjacent apartment building with 18 residents. No injuries were reported.

The exterior of a vacant warehouse at Somerville and Lincoln streets also caught on fire at approximately 11:30 p.m. Friday, damaging the warehouse and two trailers. At about 1:30 a.m., a vehicle with its interior ablaze was discovered on Thorp Street. No one was injured in either incident.

Manchester Police are probing the three incidents. Michael said the two building fires appeared to be connected and the vehicle fire was still being investigated.