HOUSTON—It appears the Heights arsonist may have struck again. Arson investigators and federal agents were on the scene of another vacant home fire Wednesday morning. It happened at the corner of West 15th and Beall. The fire started just before 5 a.m. Neighbors said they woke up to the sound of fire engines and horns. The fire started somewhere on the back side of an old garage apartment. It then spread to a carport near the front. It took crews several minutes to put out the blaze. Residents said they have their suspicions about how the fire started. They said no one has lived at the apartment in years, and it has no utilities. "I was afraid that the fire would (jump) to our house," said neighbor Dan Rifenburgh. "There’s a big oak tree on fire right next to my garage." Arson investigators provided little information, only to say they would remain at the burned-out apartment for several hours. Dozens of arson investigators with the Houston Fire Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Firearms and Tobacco remained at the scene throughout the morning. The vacant apartment is located about a mile away from the intersection of 11th and Ashland. That’s where the bulk of 15 unsolved arson fires have taken place since August.
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