‘Suspicious’ fires in Charles City under investigation
Investigators are stopping short of calling it arson, but five structure fires on three separate occasions in the same area along the Chickahominy River waterfront in Charles City County are being labeled “suspicious.”
All three incidents occurred last month starting in the early morning hours on Nov. 5 when fire destroyed two unoccupied house trailers and a nearby shed. Then overnight on Nov. 15, a boathouse burned, and the latest occurred overnight on Nov. 19-20 when fire consumed a single-story, unoccupied house located near the boathouse.
No injuries have been reported, but estimates place the damage thus far at close to $200,000. Charles City Sheriff’s Office and State Police investigators have no suspects.
“Right now, we’re trying to put the pieces of the puzzle together to see if they are related,” said sheriff’s Capt. Jayson Crawley. “We’re waiting on lab results to see if some type of accelerant was used.”
Crawley said someone called from Rockahock Campground on the New Kent County side of the river to report the Nov. 5 fires. Charles City firefighters, along with support from New Kent, battled the blazes.
But the Nov. 15 boat shed and Nov. 19-20 house fires occurred in secluded locations and were not reported. The owner discovered the shed the next day while a contractor sent to work on the house found only charred remains the day after, Crawley said.
The first fires occurred off The Glebe Lane along Mill Creek Road. The boat shed and house were along Cypress Bank Road, located off Sturgeon Point Road.
“The structures were probably within one or two miles of each other,” Crawley said, adding that lack of evidence and witnesses so far has “kind of put us behind the eight-ball.”
He said only the house and one of the trailers had working electrical service.
Anyone who observed suspicious activity in the area or has information about the fires is urged to call the sheriff’s office at 829-9265 or Crime Stoppers at 780-1000 or text iTip to CRIMES (274637).