An overnight fire in a residential neighborhood is believed to be the fourth arson in four days in West Seattle, police say.
Fire crews responded to the latest fire, in the 6500 block of 40th Avenue in the Delridge area, at about 2:30 a.m. Wednesday after receiving reports of smoke and flames in a recycling bin.
The flames were quickly extinguished, preventing them from spreading to a nearby home.
Now investigators say the blaze appears the fourth one to be intentionally set since Sunday - all clustered within a one-mile radius in West Seattle.
The fires share some common traits besides their proximity to one another - all were set in the early morning hours between 2:30 and 4:30 a.m. and all were set outside.
The first two fires damaged cars in the Sylvan Ridge development early Sunday morning. The owner of one car found a burning box beneath his vehicle.
The third arson, early Monday, damaged a building with Seattle Housing Authority offices on the first floor and an East African Community Center located on the second floor. The community center serves a local Muslim community and has a religious school connected with it.
Wednesday morning's fire destroyed the recycling bin where it started but did not spread.