SPOKANE COUNTY, Wash. — Investigators say they’ve arrested a woman responsible for setting up to 11 fires off Ben Apple Road in Edwall in west Spokane County near the Lincoln County line. Firefighters have responded to that area multiple times in recent weeks.
Court documents state that 61-year-old Georgia Williams confessed to starting up to 11 fires that the fire department responded to at 14708 S Ben Apple Road. The documents also show firefighters had set up cameras in the area to try and catch a potential arsonist.
SCFD 3 Division Chief reviewed surveillance video after the most recent fire on Wednesday. Court documents say he saw Williams and a man leave a trailer parked next to a shed. Then, they got in a truck and left. One minute later, the footage shows smoke coming from the trailer. Deputies say Williams and the man were the only people present during the start of the fire. They also found a purple barbecue lighter in the door pocket of her truck, and a sheet of paper with a charred edge on the floor.
Deputies say Williams confessed to setting some boxes on fire on July 15th. When asked why she did it, court documents state Williams guessed, ‘excitement’ but she didn’t know.
For now, she faces one charge of second-degree arson. Her bail was set at $7,500 today in court.
People living there have told us they’re frustrated and on edge. The fires have been burning on a property at the corner of Ben Apple Road and Tucker Prairie Road.
That property is owned by Rhonda and William Canfield, who have lived there for more than two decades. The couple says the repeated fires have destroyed most of what they owned.
“I figure most of it is gone,” William Canfield said. “My man cave with all of my camping and hunting and fishing gear is gone. We still have a trailer to stay in.”
Rhonda Canfield added: “That’s all we have. I mean, everything is gone.”
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