Security camera video shows an arsonist setting fires in front of four D.C. homes early Monday, forcing a dozen people to run for their lives in the middle of the night.
Mulugeta Ayele and his wife were asleep inside their home on Buchanan Street NW when they got a rude awakening.
“Loud popping sound, so, as I look towards the window, I see a bright orange light coming through,” building owner Kelly Alemayehu said. “It was heart stopping. It was, like, I was shaken. I was shaken. It was really, really hard to believe. What I’m grateful for is the fact that God woke me up at that moment.”
She said they are lucky to be alive.
Ayele jumped into action before the fire caused too much damage to their home and their next-door neighbor, but their tenant two doors down wasn’t as fortunate. Flames ripped through a second-story rental unit with three people inside.
Everyone made it out unharmed, but their home was destroyed.
“We’ve never seen anything like. Never, never,” Alemayehu said. “And it’s a very scary and worrisome experience. I mean, I still worry. I still lose sleep. Yeah, I don’t sleep well.”
“If I wasn’t awake, not only property would be damaged,” she said. “A lot of lives would have been lost. This would have been a mass murder.”
Alemayehu said they have no idea why anyone would do this. They’ve owned the building for almost 30 years and never had any issues.
Arson fires caught on security camera
In the video, someone in a black hoodie walks up to the porch around 2:40 a.m. and pours some sort of liquid on the doormats before igniting the fires in front of each door.
Alemayehu can’t watch it. The sight of flames at her front door brings tears and a lot of questions.
“Why?” she asked. “What could we do so bad that you wanted to impose this much pain and suffering. Why? Was it worth it?”
A neighbor’s camera caught the arsonist running away.
D.C. fire officials said it’s an active, ongoing investigation. Anyone who knows who the person in the video is or anything that can help should call the arson tip line at 202-673-ARSON.
