Investigators: Church fire may have been intentional 7/4/2009 12:22 AM By KAREN DAILY Staff writer
The Aiken County Sheriff's Office is investigating an early morning fire at Rocksville Baptist Church in Warrenville that arson investigators found evidence to show was intentionally set.
About 6 a.m. Friday, a resident living near the Pine Street church heard an alarm at the church and called 911. Dispatchers at the call center sent a deputy to the church and then learned that another resident saw smoke coming from the church.
Langley volunteer firefighter Lt. Ben Smith said crews were there within just a few minutes of the emergency call.
He said, knowing that it was a church fire, they called on as many firefighters as they could get there.
"We don't know what we have until we get there so it's better to have them there and not need them then to need more," Smith said.
They found a small fire inside that they were able to put out quickly, but Dwain Smith, also a volunteer with Langley, believed the fire appeared suspicious and contacted the sheriff's office.
Arson investigators do not believe the fire was set as part of a hate crime.
The criminal investigation is still ongoing, said Sgt. Dave Myers, sheriff's office spokesperson.
Although there was moderate damage reported, most of it was from the smoke and heat.
The fire lieutenant said the fire was inside and was extinguished quickly.
"We had Beech Island, Graniteville and Bath help," he said.
About 20 firefighters responded.
Anyone with information about this crime is asked to contact Lt. Clay Adams with the Aiken County Sheriff's Office at (800) 922-9709 or Crime Stoppers of the Midlands at (888) 599-TIPS.
Callers will remain anonymous and will be eligible for a cash reward of between $50 and $1,000.
Contact Karen Daily at kdaily@aikenstandard.com.
Notice about comments:
AikenStandard.com is pleased to offer readers the ability to comment on stories. We expect our readers to engage in lively, yet civil discourse. AikenStandard.com does not edit user submitted statements and we cannot promise that readers will not occasionally find offensive or inaccurate comments posted in the comments area. Responsibility for the statements posted lies with the person submitting the comment, not AikenStandard.com. If you find a comment that is objectionable, please click "report abuse" and we will review it for possible removal. Please be reminded, however, that in accordance with our Terms of Use and federal law, we are under no obligation to remove any third party comments posted on our website.
1