ST. PAUL, Minn. (WCCO) – Police are searching for an arsonist after a fire caused extensive damage to several garages in St. Paul Friday morning.
St. Paul firefighters responded to a report of a nine stall garage on fire at about 2:13 a.m. on the 1000 block of Van Dyke Street. When they arrived, they found an active fire at a garage largely used for residential storage at a 17-unit apartment building. They said three of the nine garage stalls were fully engulfed when crews arrived.
Authorities learned of the fire after a resident of the building went outside to have a cigarette and saw the flames coming from the garage.
(credit: St. Paul Police)
Investigators say the fire was sent intentionally, and the case has been sent to the St. Paul Police Department for a criminal investigation.
Authorities said the garage, which was worth an estimated $100,000, is a total loss. There was also siding on a nearby house that suffered heat damage, which authorities estimated at $3,500. Nobody was injured in the fire.
The St. Paul Police Department is investigating the incident.
