More Fires Hit LA on NYE

Wave of arson now the worst since '92 riots
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Jan 1, 2012 5:03 AM CST
Los Angeles Arson Wave Continues New Year's Eve
A Los Angeles Fire Department firefighter extinguishes multiple cars on fire in a carport in the Sun Valley neighborhood of Los Angeles.   (AP Photo/Dan Steinberg)

Hundreds of extra firefighters were deployed in Los Angeles New Year's Eve to fight the city's worst wave of arson since the 1992 riots. Four more cars were set ablaze, apparently at random, and investigators believe the same arsonist or arsonists who started more than 30 fires in vehicles and car ports Thursday and Friday is to blame, the Los Angeles Times reports. Firefighters managed to prevent Saturday's fires from spreading to buildings.

"Whoever is doing this is really messing with people's lives," says Los Angeles Fire Captain Jamie Moore. Rewards of up to $60,000 are being offered for information leading to a conviction and helicopters, extra patrol cars, and undercover officers have been deployed in an effort to stop the attacks. "We're pulling out all the stops," a fire department spokesman says. "We're hoping that the person or people responsible will be brought to swift and complete justice." (More Los Angeles stories.)

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