Early-morning fire believed to be arson

By Janine Anderson
Journal Times

Thursday, August 21, 2008 3:25 PM CDT

RACINE — Police and fire investigators believe someone intentionally started the early-morning fire at a West Racine beauty shop.

Luerene’s Beauty Supply, 3500 Kinzie Ave., caught fire early Wednesday morning, causing an estimated $15,000 in loss: $10,000 for the property and $5,000 for the contents.

The fire was reported at 2:55 a.m. when someone driving by saw the flames and stopped, knocking on a neighbor’s door to alert them to the blaze. The neighbor had heard a loud bang a short time before and was awake, said Police Lt. Jim Dobbs. The neighbor saw a male subject run from the area after hearing the bang, Dobbs said.

The front door of the business was broken and a flammable liquid was put inside, according to the fire department. The Arson Task Force investigated Wednesday.

No one was in the store when the fire started, but people were in the residence behind it. The fire was confined to the front half of the building, said Fire Lt. John Spranger.

“Our guys did a good job of stopping the fire where it was,” Spranger said.

Investigators were on the scene for about four hours sampling for flammable liquids and collecting evidence.

“We had positive tests for a flammable liquid,” Spranger said. The evidence has been turned over to the police, he said.

Dobbs said the business owner said she had no idea why someone would try to set her business on fire.

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