Billye and Keith Green are still seeking answers after a fire just after 1 a.m. on Nov. 1 destroyed two vehicles parked outside their DeKalb County home. The couple said they have lived there for more than 20 years and escaped without injury, but they do not know who targeted them or why.
According to WSB-TV, surveillance footage appears to show someone carrying what looked like a gas can, pouring a substance on Billye's car and Keith's work truck, then setting the vehicles on fire. Billye Green said something woke her during the night; when she looked outside, the cars were already engulfed in flames.
A Scramble With a Fire Extinguisher
Keith Green ran outside with a fire extinguisher, but it ran dry as he tried to stop the flames. “The flames were 15 feet high over my truck,” he said. Billye Green said she believes her husband's response may have helped keep the fire from spreading to their house.
A neighbor's surveillance camera reportedly captured a car speeding away after the fire was set, according to WSB-TV Channel 2 - Atlanta. The driver and the car's destination remain unknown. The Greens said they do not know why they were targeted; Billye Green speculated that the person may have gone to the wrong house, but investigators have not confirmed a motive.
A Destroyed Work Truck and Mounting Costs
The fire destroyed the work truck the couple relies on for their small business, WSB-TV Channel 2 - Atlanta reported. Keith Green said replacing both vehicles and dealing with insurance costs will add to the financial toll. He said the family could have been trapped inside if the flames had spread to the house.
The couple said they are grateful they were not hurt. Georgia Arson Control is offering up to $10,000 for information leading to an arrest and conviction, according to WSB-TV Channel 2 - Atlanta. No suspect has been identified and no arrest has been announced.
How to Share Information
Georgia Arson Control, a nonprofit that provides rewards to people who report arson, lists 1-800-282-5804 for reporting and says information provided is confidential, according to the organization.
A Separate Brush-Fire Case
The Clarkston-area fires were a separate brush-fire case, not a reported vehicle-arson case. Decaturish reported that a man was suspected of starting 15 brush fires near Clarkston from the night of April 26 into the early morning of April 27. A WSB-TV report said those fires threatened homes, a mosque and a nearby apartment building, but no structures were lost. The two cases have not been reported as connected.
For now, the Greens are left waiting for answers while they figure out how to replace their vehicles and move forward from an attack they never saw coming. Anyone with information about the Nov. 1 fire is being urged to come forward as investigators continue looking into the case.
