A 22-year-old woman has been arrested in connection with a fire that occurred in October in Newport News.
The fire happened Oct. 28 at an apartment building in the 900 block of Marcus Drive, off Old Oyster Point Road, said Battalion Chief Stephen Pincus.
Investigators ruled the fire as suspicious the following day.
Charmaine K. March, of the 5600 Block of Londonderry Road in Virginia Beach, is charged with one count of arson of an occupied dwelling.
Previous story, 8:49 a.m. Oct. 29:
The Newport News Fire Marshal’s Office is investigating after a fire that heavily damaged a vacant apartment Wednesday night was determined to be suspicious, an official said.
The apartment is located in the Abbington Landing complex in the 900 block of Marcus Drive, near Old Oyster Point Road.
Firefighter-medics responded to the blaze about 9:30 p.m. and saw heavy smoke coming from the building, according to Battalion Chief Stephen Pincus.
Firefighters went inside and began an aggressive attack of the fire on the second floor. At one point, they evacuated because there was concern part of the structure had collapsed and firefighters’ safety was at risk, Pincus said.
They continued to fight the blaze from the outside until the main body of the fire was knocked down. Afterward, they reassessed and determined it was safe to re-enter the building. Inside, they found a hole where flames had burned through the floor, but there was no collapse, he said.
The fire was under control about 9:55 p.m., Pincus said.
The apartment suffered heavy fire damage, but the fire wall prevented flames from spreading to other units. Two adjacent apartments had to be vented with fans to remove carbon monoxide from smoke that had drifted in, according to Battalion Chief Jay Culpepper.
No injuries were reported.
