LONDON -- A 47-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of arson following three major fires in Oxfordshire overnight.
The South Oxfordshire District Council building in Crowmarsh Gifford, a nearby funeral parlour and a property in Quakers Corner, Roke Marsh were all ablaze in the early hours of Thursday morning.
Images of the major fire at South #Oxfordshire District Council in Crowmarsh. Images by @NegusIan pic.twitter.com/vW5p2fY0Fy— Oxfordshire Guardian (@OxfordGuardian) January 15, 2015
Thames Valley Police confirmed that the three fires were linked and that they had arrested a suspect. They also confirmed that all three fires were under control.
At this stage the police investigation is focusing on all three fires being linked and are believed suspicious #Wallingford— TVPSouth Oxon & VOWH (@tvpsouthandvale) January 15, 2015
A 47-year-old local man has been arrested on suspicion of arson and is currently in custody #Wallingford— TVPSouth Oxon & VOWH (@tvpsouthandvale) January 15, 2015
At the council building, over 100 firefighters tackled the blaze in the early hours of Thursday morning. 13 fire engines were deployed, and a further 14 were sent to the other fires.
Witnesses reported seeing gas canisters thrown into the council offices, and Thames Valley Police said that a vehicle collided with the entrance to the building before the fire broke out.
One local, Karl Mitchell-Shead, told the BBC he'd seen a burnt-out vehicle in the foyer of the council building. "We wondered if someone had accidentally driven into it, or purposely driven into the foyer, but certainly it looks like that's where the fire started," he said. "That was the area that was most heavily damaged."