UPDATE 3:38 PM 7/26/2012
Shortly after midnight Thursday morning fire crews were called to the 1500 block of Lynn Street for a trash fire. Firefighters worked quickly to put that fire out and as they were doing so were alerted to a second fire in an outbuilding. That fire was next door to the building they were already working in front of.
As firefighters were wrapping up the investigation on Lynn Street they were notified of another call, this time to a fire in the 1100 block of Swann Street.
When they arrived they found the back porch of 1110 Swann Street on fire.
Chief Fire Inspector Tim Flinn says the origin of the fires are undetermined but he's not ruling out that these three fires may be related.
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Two fires sparked in Parkersburg early Thursday morning. Fire investigators believe both were intentionally set.
The fires happened around 1:30 Thursday morning and there were people home at one of them.
The first was in the 1200 block of Lynn Street, where firefighters responded to a report of a trash fire, but arrived to find a detached garage fully involved.
Parkersburg Fire Captain Brian Drake says the garage belongs to a vacant home but there were people home at the second fire on Swann Street.
Captain Drake says, "it came in as a structure fire and we arrived on scene and had flames and smoke showing from the exterior of the house and the first engine company pulled a line. It didn't extend into the house. We had to beat the door down to get the occupants from the inside."
Pamela Riffle and her brother, Michael Jones, were home when it happened.
Riffle says she was asleep when the fire broke out.
"My friend came to the front door beating on it and I finally got up. I don't know," said Riffle.
Captain Drake estimated the fire caused about five thousand dollars worth of damage to the home.
He says it's possible the two fires are related and both under investigation.
