Police and fire officials hope an arsonist can be stopped before he or she hurts somebody.

Fire crews were called to four separate human-started fires in downtown Chilliwack early Tuesday morning, including one that did minor damage to a garage.

The busy night commenced with a dumpster fire on Mary Street just after midnight, according to assistant fire chief Ian Josephson. An hour later, at 1:13 a.m., fire crews responded to a garage fire at a Margaret Avenue property. The flames were snuffed out quickly before the shed's contents sustained any damage.

A couple hours after that fire, cedar hedges were set alight on Hocking Avenue, around 2:51 a.m., and at the ICBC claims centre off Chilliwack Central Rd., around 3:04 a.m.

Josephson believes the same arsonist was responsible for all four fires. And while none did serious damage, both fire and police officials warn that future fires could do considerable harm.

"It escalates," Josephson said. "Now we're talking about a garage. What's going to be next?"

This week's arson spree comes just two weeks after fire crews snuffed out three other human-caused fires.

A dumpster was set ablaze on April 7. Four days later, on the morning of April 11, a cedar hedge and the same dumpster were lit on fire within half an hour of each other.

Josephson said one person is believed to be responsible for those three fires. But he said it's unclear whether the same person is responsible for both arson sprees.

Either way, the fires need to stop, he said.

"Hopefully, somebody will give us some help."

Chilliwack RCMP are leading the investigation into the fires. Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 604-792-4611 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.

tolsen@chilliwacktimes.com

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