By Patrick Wilson and Shayna Meliker
The Virginian-Pilot
NORFOLK, Va. — A fire that destroyed a building in Ghent and damaged the one next door Sunday was arson, according to the Norfolk fire marshal’s office.
Investigators are asking for the public’s help to determine who set the fire in the 600 block of Boissevain Ave.
The blaze, reported at 2:55 a.m., destroyed 617 Boissevain, which housed six condos. It also spread to a house at 615 Boissevain that was under renovation, said Jack Goldhorn, a spokesman for Norfolk Fire-Rescue.
Smoke from the three-alarm fire filled the sky over Ghent as nearly 100 firefighters rushed to the scene.
A resident of one of the condos injured his ankle jumping from the burning building. A firefighter also was taken to the hospital to be treated for exhaustion. Both were released Sunday.
Goldhorn said the injured man might have moved into his condo the day before.
Chad Herndon, who lives in an apartment nearby, said he came outside after he heard fire trucks. “The house next door was just erupting in flames, and slowly but surely it spread,” he said.
Mark Bonney, who lives on Stockley Gardens, said he saw the top floor of 617 Boissevain “engulfed in flames” and saw the fire spread to the corner of 615.
He called to check on friends a few houses down. “The greatest fear is just that it’s going to leap and leap and leap,” he said.
Both buildings were more than 100 years old, according to Bill Inge, an assistant at the Norfolk Public Library.
Goldhorn said investigators determined the fire was set after they ruled out all accidental causes. Norfolk Fire-Rescue did not release any other details about how and where the fire started, except to say that it originated at 617 Boissevain.
Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Line at 1-888-LOCK-U-UP and could be eligible for a reward if the tip leads to an arrest.
Firefighters from Portsmouth, Chesapeake and Virginia Beach were called to assist.
The fire was under control just before 6 a.m. Firefighters continued putting out hot spots throughout the morning. By afternoon, crews started to tear down the building at 617 Boissevain.
Goldhorn said it appeared the man who jumped from the burning building was the only person displaced.
The house at 615 Boissevain was empty because it was being renovated. It was boarded up Sunday afternoon.
Pilot writers Lauren King and Elisabeth Hulette contributed to this report.
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