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Police and fire marshals are investigating a string of 52 house fires since 2003, which they suspect are of the same arsonist party.

Read more stories on this subject in our arson topic page.Most of these fired have plagued the neighborhood north of Cannon street, inhabited by many college students.

Here's a word about this 'hot trend' from The Post and Courier:
The arsonist strikes at night, when people are sleeping, often targeting vacant houses or homes occupied by college students. 'The potential for catastrophe here is huge, Charleston Fire Chief Thomas Carr said. 'With the student population and the high number of people who occupy some of these places, you can't take it seriously enough.'

The Post and Courier discusses many cases of arson since 2003.

People know that it is a problem, but I wonder why the fire investigators are concerned now after 52 cases. Maybe they have been investigating the trend for years, but have finally gotten a hunch. Who knows?

Head over to The Post and Courier for the cases and the rest of the story.