A house fire in Lincoln Park early Monday was an act of arson, according to Chicago police.
Fire fighters and police responded to the home in the 2600 block of North Orchard around 2 a.m. Investigators later determined the fire started on a back porch of the home, according to CPD spokesperson Karie James. The fire did not spread to the entire house, but the side of a nearby home was damaged, James said.
A source said the adjacent home suffered interior damage. It was reportedly occupied by a family with children. Everyone got out safely.
The Chicago Fire Department has not yet determined how the blaze was started, according to James.
No other fires are known to have been reported in the area early Monday. But a cluster of suspicious fires broke out in alleys in Lakeview that night.
And a string of intentionally set fires was set in North Center and Roscoe Village on Tuesday evening.
No arrests have been made in any of the fires and no suspect descriptions have been released.
This week’s fires came amid widely circulated social media rumors of an organized arson plot against the North Side. Other online posts encouraged people to search their neighborhoods for hidden gasoline containers.
But police and fire officials called the rumors unfounded, Block Club Chicago reported Tuesday morning.
