A man was arrested near Sharp Memorial Hospital on Sunday on suspicion of setting six pre-dawn fires in San Diego's Birdland and Kearny Mesa neighborhoods, after flames broke out at several sites before sunrise.
Five of the fires started within one hour, beginning at 4:05 a.m., and the sixth was reported at 5:40 a.m. on Linda Vista Road between Mesa College Drive and Markham Street. Fires were also reported on Health Center Drive, Linda Vista Road, Birmingham Drive and Frost Street, with rubbish, dumpsters and one tree set ablaze. No injuries or structural damage were reported.
The fires began at 4:05 a.m. on Health Center Drive between Vista Hill Avenue and Frost Street near Sharp Memorial Hospital. Another fire followed at 4:37 a.m. on Linda Vista Road at Mesa College Drive and Markham Street near Kearny High School and Mesa College, then a 4:39 a.m. fire on Health Center Drive between Vista Hill Avenue and Frost Street. A fourth fire was reported at 4:43 a.m. at Birmingham Drive and Birmingham Way near Rady Children's Hospital, and a fifth at 4:59 a.m. on Frost Street between Health Center Drive and Children's Way.
The suspect was allegedly seen in the area by a hospital security guard and a passerby, and officers identified him with the help of hospital security camera footage. The SDFRD Metro Arson Strike Team was investigating the fires. The arrest brought the pre-dawn run of blazes to a close, but investigators were still asking anyone with information to call CrimeStoppers at 619-235-8477.
