Cops Eye Arson Suspect In Fla. Wildfires

Rampant Real Estate Development Contributes To Spread Of Massive Blaze

(CBS/AP)  Authorities arrested a man they say was seen throwing a Molotov cocktail into the woods Wednesday in this Atlantic coast town, where several homes have been gutted by wildfires this week.

Officials questioned Brian Crowder, who authorities allege set a small blaze that was quickly extinguished. They also asked the 31-year-old about larger wildfires that have found ample fuel in developments in the region, blazes he denied involvement with.

Palm Bay Police Chief Bill Berger said he believed there was a "good possibility" Crowder would be charged with starting a small fire.

A resident alerted police after seeing Crowder throw an object from his car that sparked the small fire, Palm Bay Detective Ernie Diebel said. The object was a glass bottle containing a flammable liquid, Berger said.

Officers stopped Crowder's vehicle shortly afterward but he fled on foot, Diebel said. He was tracked through the woods with the help of residents who spotted him running past their homes, police said.

Records show that Crowder has drug, burglary and automobile theft convictions dating to 1996. He was charged Wednesday with six probation violations.

A woman who answered the phone at a telephone listing for Crowder's mother declined to give a comment.

According to arrest reports, Crowder has lived at various addresses in Palm Bay. Neighbors of Crowder's most recent residences, including a group home run by a church, said that the homes were frequently rented by different people and that they did not know anything about Crowder.

Authorities have said they believe the wildfires burning in Palm Bay and neighboring Malabar were set by an arsonist or arsonists. Two classic Florida phenomena have fueled the flames: rampant development and a year-round growing season.

Since the fires began Sunday, about 20 homes have been destroyed and 140 other structures damaged. The damage was estimated around $3.5 million, said Palm Bay City Manager Lee Feldman, who said homes and outbuildings were among the damaged structures. Officials had earlier reported 40 homes destroyed.

Efforts to contain the fires, which have burned about 15 square miles, were improving, officials said. Still, major highways in the area were still being intermittently closed because of smoke and the proximity of the flames.

"We had pretty good weather last night, so the fire laid down and let us catch up a bit," said Todd Schroeder, spokesman for the state's Division of Forestry.

Some residents tried Wednesday to pick through charred remains of their homes for belongings.

Firefighter Allen Civita's three-bedroom Palm Bay home burned to the ground Monday, leaving only metal bedsprings, melted wine glasses and the blackened hulk of the stove. He said a stranger kicked open the front door to grab photographs from the living room, kitchen and a bedroom before the flames took everything else.

"Thanks to that guy, we have some pictures that were in the house of us and the kids," he said. "I don't know if he lived through it before or if he had the good common sense to think, 'These people are losing everything, let me see what I can do to make some memories for them."'

In north Florida, firefighters were also working on fires in uninhabited areas of Franklin and Liberty counties, west of Tallahassee. Both fires were in the Apalachicola National Forest and no people or homes were in danger.

CBS affiliate WKMG-TV in Orlando reports that one small, quarter-acre brush fire in Port St. Lucie was likely started by a teenage girl burning love letters, according to authorities.

A fire investigator believes that blaze started Monday night when a teenage girl set fire to love letters she wanted to destroy.

St. Lucie Fire District Deputy Chief Tom Whitley said no structures were damaged in the fire, which crews quickly controlled.

Early Wednesday officials said that containment efforts were improving around the fires in Palm Bay and nearby Malabar.

"We had pretty good weather last night, so the fire laid down and let us catch up a bit," said Todd Schroeder, spokesman for the state's Division of Forestry.

The destruction was hard for Veda VanFleet to fathom as she stood amid the charred remains of the two-story home her husband, Butch, built almost 30 years ago in Malabar. She remembered the treehouse her three boys used to play in out back and the basketball hoop in the front yard.

"It's gone. It's all gone," said VanFleet, who cried all day Monday and awoke with resolve Tuesday to pick through the ashes where she and her husband planned to rebuild.

Palm Bay schools were to be closed again Wednesday. Smoke and the proximity of the flames have caused the intermittent closure of major highways in the area, including a 34-mile section of Interstate 95 that was closed midmorning Tuesday.

"This really won't be over until it rains. Until it rains, the threat is going to be ever-present," said State Emergency Management Director Craig Fugate. Forecasts show little chance of rain until at least the weekend.

On the other side of the country, crews were trying to make headway Wednesday against a fire 45 miles northeast of Los Angeles that had forced the evacuation of a half-dozen vacation homes Tuesday, though most already were empty, authorities said. Flames came within 100 yards of some cabins but none had been damaged.

[minnick8-2009]

Ranger,

I agree, but I think they should be hung in public as an example of what will happen to the next person when they do it. No mercy. And If I ever start a wildfire, then hang me.

[ranger1948]

First they have to charge him, get him tried and if convicted i think he should be given the death penalty. People like this will nver conform to the laws established by society. I consider them the same as an animal that has rabies. No cure, just put them out of their misery.

[veteran72]

Take him out back and put 2 in his noggin....no more defective genes from this inbred Scumbag....

[darnedsocks]

MAKES YOU WONDER IF THIS GUY REALLY SET THE FIRE OR WHETHER IT WAS BY NATURAL CAUSES, BUT THE FIRE DEPARTMENT''S ATTORNEYS PROBABLY RECOMMEND FINDING A SCAPEGOAT TO AVOID LAWSUITS. THIS WOULD BE AN EASY DUDE TO PIN IT ON, SINCE HE''S OBVIOUSLY DOES NOT MAKE GOOD DECISIONS ABOUT HOW TO MANAGE HIS LIFE.

[fit2print]

I have no sympathy for someone who terrorizes a community by setting fires that destroy homes, the environment, and worst yet, human lives. Whether he is doing it to attract attention or gain notoriety does not particularly matter to the outcome of his actions. Arson, especially on this scale, is a depraved crime. I encourage you all to voice your opinions on www.depravityscale.org where you can help to influence how justice is served.

[fit2print]

I have no sympathy for someone who terrorizes a community by setting fires that destroy homes, the environment, and worst yet, human lives. Whether he is doing it to attract attention or gain notoriety does not particularly matter to the outcome of his actions. Arson, especially on this scale, is a depraved crime. I encourage you all to voice your opinions on www.depravityscale.org where you can help to influence how justice is served.

[fit2print]

I have no sympathy for someone who terrorizes a community by setting fires that destroy homes, the environment, and worst yet, human lives. Whether he is doing it to attract attention or gain notoriety does not particularly matter to the outcome of his actions. Arson, especially on this scale, is a depraved crime. I encourage you all to voice your opinions on www.depravityscale.org where you can help to influence how justice is served.

[fit2print]

I have no sympathy for someone who terrorizes a community by setting fires that destroy homes, the environment, and worst yet, human lives. Whether he is doing it to attract attention or gain notoriety does not particularly matter to the outcome of his actions. Arson, especially on this scale, is a depraved crime. I encourage you all to voice your opinions on www.depravityscale.org where you can help to influence how justice is served.

[questionnews]

Arsonists caused fires in southern california each of the last 4 or 5 years. Last year there were even a couple deaths. They wait until the santa ana winds kick up & start lighting up the forests & grasslands. Once those winds fan the fire, its almost impossible to put them out.
I see a real use for military trained snipers for these type of people.

[navyjimfl]

this florida cracker is an insult to nature and should be taken off the streets for good