By Laura French
PHILADELPHIA — Philadelphia fire officials report that firefighters responded to 378 fires throughout the city in a three-day period amidst civil unrest.
Philadelphia Fire Commissioner Adam Thiel told CBS Philly on Monday that the department normally sees about seven or eight working structure fires in a 24-hour period, but that there were about 24 structure fires in 24 hours between Sunday and Monday and about 50 or 60 in a 48-hour stretch.
Between Saturday and Monday, firefighters responded to the 378 blazes that included structure fires, vehicle fires and garbage fires, and at least 14 of those fires have been ruled as arsons. One of the largest blazes over the weekend was a three-alarm fire affecting several businesses on Saturday, CBS Philly reported.
https://twitter.com/ThielAdam/status/1267371639962034177
Multiple cities across the country have been affected by fires and arsons during riots coinciding with protests over the death of George Floyd and other police killings across the nation.
“We recognize all the pain and the hurt that’s out there. Our role really is to save lives and protect property,” Thiel told CBS Philly.
Philadelphia Fire Department crews have also responded to thousands of medical calls throughout the weekend.