By Harrison Mantas
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
FORT WORTH, Texas — Fort Worth police have arrested a suspect in the Sept. 3 fire that injured two of the city’s firefighters.
The announcement by Fort Worth fire officials comes a few weeks after one of those firefighters, 26-year-old Caleb Halvorson, was released from the burn unit at Parkland Hospital in Dallas.
| EARLIER: Texas firefighter in stable condition after being trapped in collapse
Shawndreika Thomas, 34, allegedly used a cigarette lighter to ignite combustible material at 209 Williams St. in the Historic Southside neighborhood, arson unit Capt. Wayne May told reporters at a news conference Thursday.
Thomas was arrested without incident on Oct. 29 and was booked into the Fort Worth city jail, May said. She was booked on charges of arson of a habitation and bodily injury of the firefighters, he said.
The investigation relied on collaboration between the Fort Worth arson unit, the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Fort Worth police homeless outreach programs and enforcement team, May said.
None of the officials who spoke at Thursday’s news conference offered a motive. Thomas had no connection to the building other than staying at a nearby homeless shelter, May said.
The case is being referred to the Tarrant County District Attorney’s office for prosecution, May said, adding that if convicted, Thomas could face a maximum sentence of 99 years in prison.
“This development brings us one step closer to justice for our injured firefighters, and the community affected by this deliberate act,” interim fire chief Raymond Hill told reporters Thursday.
Support Firefighter Caleb Halvorson
A Help a Hero campaign has been launched to support Fort Worth Firefighter Caleb Halvorson as he continues his recovery from severe burn injuries sustained in the September fire.
Donate to the fundraiserThe safety of firefighters and the public is the department’s highest priority, Hill said, adding that his department takes crimes that endanger that safety seriously.
The department is working with the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) to review its after-action report and offer advice on changes to improve firefighter safety, Hill said.
These after-action reports usually take four to six weeks to produce, but because of the seriousness of the injuries in this case, the report could take longer, Hill said.
It could also be delayed by the federal government shutdown, because NIOSH is a division of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and has been closed since Oct. 1.
Halvorson was trapped under burning debris after the house’s garage collapsed on him.
He’s been home recovering since Oct. 6, and has been reunited with his firstborn son, who was discharged from the neonatal intensive care unit at Texas Health Resources in Alliance after over 100 days.
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