Pennsylvania Officials Say New Fire is Not Part of Arson String

Fire has struck in the Coatesville, Pennsylvania area again, but officials says it’s not believed to be connected to the recent string of arsons in that area.

The fire erupted just after midnight Monday in what is believed to be a vacant house on Gibbons Avenue in the borough of South Coatesville, which adjoins the arson-plagued steel town.

A blaze early Saturday that badly damaged two homes on East Valley Road in Coatesville was ruled the 20th arson this year in that community 35 miles west of Philadelphia.

It came a day after a 19-year-old man was held for trial on arson and aggravated assault charges.

Another man has also been charged, and three people were arrested in December in other arsons, including a December blaze that killed an 83-year-old woman.