Firefighter Accused of Starting House Fire

A McAlmont volunteer firefighter rushed to the scene of a house fire, officials say they later learned that Jeffery Murray may have started the blaze. The fire destroye one abandoned home on Buford Road in the McAlmont Community and ruined another . Firefighters arrived at the house about midnight Friday. By 3:00 Saturday morning, Pulaski County Sheriff`s deputies arrested 19-year old Jeffery Murray and charged him with two counts of arson. The McAlmont fire chief says Murray had only been with the department since October and was stil on a probationary period. Chief Ed Kinsey says when they questioned him, Murray admitted to starting the fire with a friend, and told deputies that the gas can and lighter fluid were in the trunk of his car. He says he did it just to watch it burn. The confession didn`t come until after Murray helped other firefighters put out the flame. "We sent him over there with one of the hose, he put that grass out to keep that house from burning. He was up here on the porch before it collapsed, helping shoot water into the house," said Kinsey. He says he suspected Murray because neighbors reported seeing a car like his speeding away from the area and he was the first person to arrive at the fire station nearby. Neighbors say the house had been abandoned for about three years. Another house immediately next door was also ruined by the fire, and probably a total loss, Kinsey says. The three people living there made it out safely. There home sustained about $30,000 damage, and was not insured. The Sheriff`s department says they are still investigating and collecting evidence. Another arrest could come soon. Murray could not be reached for comment.