A one-time church building was set on fire in Brush Prairie, the third arson this week targeting churches in Clark County.
The fire alarm at the one-time Bethesda Slavic Church, 11910 NE 154th, went off around 2 a.m. Sunday, the Clark County Sheriff’s Office said. But the alarm was canceled when the “building’s responsible party” believed it to be a false alarm. The now-vacant building is owned by Daybreak Youth Services.
A few minutes later the fire alarm went off again, and fire was spotted in the room where it began.
Firefighters put the blaze out but not before an estimated $25,000 in damage happened.
Officials earlier said both a Wednesday morning fire at the First Congregational United Church of Christ and a Thursday morning fire at Liberty Bible Church of the Nazarene were intentionally set.
Damage estimates from Wednesday’s fire at the First Congregational United Church of Christ have not been made public. Agents with the ATF responded to the scene to help conduct the investigation. Officials said it is standard anytime a house of worship is set fire that the ATF is notified. A $10,000 reward is being offered for information that leads to a conviction.