Case under investigation by state fire marshals

Fire officials are suspecting arson was the cause of two trailer fires on Old Ship Circle last week.

Atmore Fire Chief Ronald Peebles said Tuesday that both fires took place near each other.

“It is suspected arson on both of them,” Peebles said. “I’ve turned both of them over to the (Alabama) state fire marshal’s office, and they are both under investigation.”

Peebles said the first fire occurred on Thurs., March 9, at 229 Old Ship Circle. The AFD received the fire call at 2:12 a.m. and finished up at 5:10 a.m.

The second fire occurred on Sun., March 12, at 208 Old Ship Circle, at 2:15 a.m. Fire officials finished at the scene at 4:16 a.m.

Peebles said both trailers were deemed a total loss, and there were no injuries as a result.

“Nobody was living in them at the time,” he said. “They were going through a remodeling at the time.”

Peebles said one trailer was ready to be moved into before the fire, and neither one of them had power or water connected to them.

Practice fire safety when cold

A freeze watch will be in effect tonight for the Atmore area as temperatures are expected to drop to the upper 20s, according to the National Weather Service.

The temperature is slated to drop to 28 degrees tonight.

Temperatures will rise to 61 on Thursday with the low going down to 38 tomorrow night.

Over the weekend, temperatures are slated to be in the low 70s for the high and the lower 50s and higher 40s for the low.

As the temperature drops over the next couple of days, residents are reminded to practice heater safety as they could cause house fires.

Atmore Fire Chief Ronald Peebles said a good tip to know about space heaters is that one doesn’t want to be out of the room with them running.

“They need to have 36 inches of space around them,” he said.

In addition, the use of extension chords can also result in a house fire.

“Use the least amount of extension chords as you can,” Peebles said. “Don’t leave them laying in piles of leaves. It takes just one little spark to set a fire.”

As of late, the AFD has battled a few house fires, namely on Marshall Ave., Presley St. and Martin Luther King Jr. Dr., that were caused by electrical issues.