St. Pete car fires deemed arson

ST. PETERSBURG - Two vehicle fires that happened within an hour of each other Sunday morning are both arson, investigators say, and are possibly related.

St. Petersburg Fire Rescue first responded to a report of a structure fire just before 5 a.m. Sunday in the 1200 block of 11th St. North and found a detached garage and a car on fire in an alley.

Crews were able to fight the fire simultaneously and investigators quickly declared the blazes as arson.

Less than an hour later, firefighters were called to a vehicle fire in the 1100 block of Dr. Martin Luther King St. North, in the parking lot of Joseph's Gallery. Crews found a Chevrolet Silverado pick-up truck in flames and were able to extinguish the fire quickly.

Investigators say this fire is also arson and may be related to the fire on 11th St. North.

Authorities have not said whether these incidents are related to the fire that damaged a vacant house on 19th Ave. South around 3 a.m. Sunday. That fire has been deemed suspicious and is also under investigation.