Arson investigation: Wilmington Island residents anxious for answers
Jan 06, 2025
WILMINGTON ISLAND, Ga. (WSAV) - Answers can't come fast enough for some residents on Wilmington Island, as Chatham Fire and Police are investigating a house fire as arson. Georgia Arson Control is offering an up to $10,000 reward for information related to the fire on December 29th at 22 Island Creek Lane. Neighbors there believe kids are responsible, but no arrests have been made.
Neighbors say it happened just before 8 at night. Betsy, who lives a few houses down, tells News 3, she heard voices before the fire started. She wishes she would have looked out her window that night.
"I heard what sounded like young men, teenagers. I thought it might be visitors; people's grandchildren," Betsy said. "They were yelling, "We got to go. We got to go. Hurry up. Run, run! They're coming. We need to get out of here. Hurry and go." And by 8 o'clock, the fire trucks had shown up."
We're told no one was in the home at the time of the fire.
There are rumors of more incidents that night, leaving neighbors even more worried. Betsy said a flower pot at another unit in Island Creek was set on fire, but it was put out with no damage to the home.
She says she also heard of three more fires at the Commons, but Chatham Fire could only confirm one of them. Officials can't say whether these fires are connected, since they are still investigating. Betsy says this tight knit community rarely sees crime, but she's going to be proactive from now on.
"We've all been here for so many years, and we know each other. It's quiet, and we just love it here. But the first thing I did was I went and got four security cameras, and I'm going to put them on our building," Betsy said.
Chatham County Police and the state fire marshal are involved in this investigation. If you know anything about this incident, you're asked to call GAC at 1-800-282-5804.