New arson cases investigated in Downtown Orlando

ORLANDO, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35) - Chris Ross and his friends, were left cleaning up after a fire, early Thursday morning.

“The garbage can was melted all the way down, there was a bunch of wood, materials, and tools on fire, the trailer was on fire, my truck was on fire. It was all on fire,” Ross recalled.

His new pickup truck was the biggest loss. The side was scorched, the tires and door handles had melted, and the wiring was all burned-out. Ross worries how much repairs could cost.

“Up to $10,000, I'd imagine,” he said.

Ross lives at the house with his wife and kids - they were all asleep when the fire started.

“We heard crackling and my wife woke me up,” he said, “she told me there's a fire. I came outside, grabbed the hose and just started putting it out, told her to call the fire department.”

After this fire was put out, there was another fire just across the street in a dumpster behind a business, that also went up in flames. Fire investigators said these two fires are connected to a string of nine other arson incidents that started late last week. Ross said all the damage will make it tough for him and his family to have a merry Christmas.

“Christmas was already on a hard level but we're trying to do it,” he said, “with this happening, it destroys everything, you know?”

Ross hopes they catch the firebug, and says he's setup a Go Fund Me page to help pay for his repairs.