Early Monday morning, Minneapolis’ Lake Street suffered from multiple dumpsters set on fire, causing damage to a tattoo shop. A man has been arrested on suspicion of being involved in the incident.
At around 3:25 a.m., firefighters were called to 917 West Lake Street due to a fire that broke out in a building consisting of two stories. The ground floor unit of the building houses The Ink Lab.
Upon arrival, firefighters discovered that the dumpster located at the back of the building was ablaze and had spread to the building and electrical transformer. The transformer continued to spark, adding to the danger of the situation.
Xcel Energy was summoned by the fire crew to repair the electrical pole, while simultaneously extinguishing the fires.
According to a recent Facebook post by The Ink Lab, no one was hurt during an incident that caused minor smoke and water damage to the shop. The post also mentioned that due to power outages, the shop will be closed for the rest of the day, but the team is hopeful to resume operations by tomorrow.
Unfortunately, the unit located on the upper floor of the building has become unlivable.
Firefighters were alerted of additional incidents of arson in the area after successfully extinguishing the initial fire. Reports indicated that a man was seen igniting more dumpsters and garbage cans, with some of the fires almost spreading to nearby buildings.
The man who was suspected of setting the fires was spotted by both the employee and firefighters, who immediately contacted the police. The culprit, whose identity is yet to be revealed, was apprehended by the officers.
No injuries have been reported so far.