PEORIA, Ill. – The Peoria Fire Department was kept busy Thursday as crews battled two residential fires within hours of each other, one confirmed as arson and the other ruled accidental.
Fire Battalion Chief Josh Maroney says the first alarm came in just after 4 p.m. from a home in the 1300 block of Martin Luther King Drive.
Firefighters arrived to find smoke and flames, but were able to limit the bulk of the fire damage to the main floor.
Two adults inside the home escaped before help arrived. However, investigators determined that an accelerant had been poured throughout the house.
The fire has been ruled an arson. While damage is estimated at $5,000, code enforcement has declared the structure uninhabitable. The Red Cross is providing housing assistance for one resident.
Just after 7:30 p.m., a second fire broke out at an apartment building in the 1200 block of NE Adams Street. Heavy smoke and fire were visible on both levels of the two-story building.
Five residents were inside the building at the time. Two of them escaped through a second-story window onto a neighboring roof before being rescued by firefighters.
Investigators have ruled the second fire accidental. The blaze caused an estimated $200,000 in damage, and the Red Cross is assisting two adults with housing.
No injuries were reported in either incident.
