4 porch fires are set nearby

While police kept careful watch over Coatesville - a city plagued by at least 16 suspicious fires in recent weeks - four fires were set in surrounding communities early yesterday.

Federal authorities said it was too early to know if the culprits terrorizing Coatesville had begun targeting the outskirts. The fires were set within five miles of the city.

"Perhaps there's one person involved. Perhaps it's competing groups. Perhaps it's copycats," said Special Agent John Hageman, a spokesman for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, part of the task force investigating the arsons. "We're all working together to really get through the leads and start canceling out different theories."

The first fire broke out about 12:35 a.m. on a porch in the 200 block of Church Street in Valley Township, police said. Minutes later, another fire was set on a porch just up the block.

At 3 a.m., a fire started on a porch on Smith Farm Lane in Sadsbury Township. At 7 a.m., a home in the first block of Woodland Avenue in Modena was hit.

Fire significantly damaged the side of one home, Hageman said, but the others sustained damage only to the porch area and adjacent siding. No injuries were reported.

Last Sunday, Coatesville officials declared a state of emergency after a four-alarm fire the night before gutted 15 rowhouses in the 300 block of Fleetwood Street, leaving dozens homeless and causing nearly $2 million in damage.

Over the last year, arsonists have lit 30 fires in Coatesville, a former steel-mill city of about 11,600. Police have arrested three people believed responsible for at least a dozen fires last year, including one that killed an 83-year-old woman in December. But the fires haven't stopped.

Investigators can link fires and rule out copycats by examining the fire's fuel and how it traveled and by interviewing witnesses, Hageman said.

Yesterday's fires, he said, fit the Coatesville arson profile: They were set to materials left on porches.

"But at this point we will not say that they are directly linked to the arsonist or arsonists in Coatesville," Hageman said.

Coatesville officials have urged residents to clear their porches and keep outdoor lights on. Tomorrow, the city will distribute 1,000 motion-sensor lights to homeowners, city spokeswoman Kristin Geiger said. Homeowners can pick up the free lights at City Hall beginning at 1 p.m.

"It's frightening here," said James J. Pitcherella, 66, of Coatesville, whose 28-year-old son was stopped by police on his way home at 2 a.m. yesterday. "I think they're stopping everybody that time at night, anybody who's walking or driving."

Pitcherella, who grew up in Coatesville and moved back six years ago, said he was glad that the city was on "lockdown."

"It may be an inconvenience, but it's a heck of a lot better than waking up to a fire," he said.

Residents may report suspicious activity during late night and early morning hours to a roving Coatesville police patrol supervisor at 610-636-0514.

To register for reward money, people with information may call Coatesville police at 610-384-2300, the Citizens Crime Commission at 215-546-8477, or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-472-8477.

Contributions to the Citadel reward or family fund can be deposited at any Citadel office or sent to the Citadel Federal Credit Union, 135 Modena Rd., Coatesville, Pa. 19320. Specify the fund to which you are contributing.

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