Arson suspected in 3 Santa Rosa fires

Fire investigators are looking into three suspicious fires that broke out in downtown Santa Rosa Friday night, the worst of which destroyed the parsonage of an adjacent church on Orchard Street.

The Orchard Street building’s second floor was home to Walter and Bevy Hansen, both of whom were out watching a show while fire burned through the two-story building. The Hansens lost all their possessions in the fire, including five cats and a dog.

They came home Friday night shortly after firefighters responded to their burning home at 10:25 p.m.

“We couldn’t believe it was like this. We’d just been here,” said Walter Hansen, 39.

The fire started in an area where garbage and recycling cans were located in front of the house, just under a stairway that leads up to a second-floor balcony. Fire officials said the house was the last of three fires Friday night that may be related because of their proximity, timing and the way they were ignited.

The first fire was reported at 6:52 p.m. at 1038 Clark Street, where clothes and debris were set on fire on the front porch of the residence. Fire officials said that fire was put out by neighbors before firefighters arrived at the scene.

The second fire was ignited in a garbage can at 1033 4th Street. The fire, which was reported at 9:25 p.m., ignited a shed and then spread to an adjacent commercial building, causing damage to the exterior of the building and awning but did not extend inside the building, officials said.

On Orchard Street, firefighters initially thought an occupant was trapped inside the burning building because they found Bevy Hansen’s wheelchair inside.

“The firemen kept going through the house because they thought I was in the building,” she said Saturday afternoon, as she surveyed the blackened remains of the house. Throughout the morning, neighbors and friends stopped by to wish the couple well.

Bevy Hansen said she would contact the Red Cross today to find out if they could provide housing for her and her husband.

The charred front balcony of the house drooped to the point of falling down. A badly burned Baldwin organ, its keys barely distinguishable, sat near the balcony.

Numerous fire engines and trucks were used to respond to the fires Friday night. Firefighters from the Rincon Valley Fire District assisted Santa Rosa fire personnel.