WSU police investigate third suspicious fire

Washington State University police are investigating the third suspicious fire to hit the Pullman campus in the past week. Dispatchers received a call to McCoy Hall, a veterinary school building on the WSU campus, around 12:30 this morning. Firefighters and police officers found that the sprinkler system had been triggered in an isolated section of the building, only accessible through the south entrance, a news release from WSU and the Pullman Fire Department said. Police said the arsonist smashed a window to get inside. Investigators found several places inside where fires had been started. However, the sprinkler system kept damage to a minimum. The lower floor of the building was damaged extensively by the water. McCoy Hall was cordoned off as a crime scene. A tracking dog also was borrowed from the Spokane Police Department to assist in the investigation, the release said. Pullman firefighters were called to two other fires that destroyed the community buildings at Nez Perce apartments last Tuesday morning, and at Chief Joseph apartments on Saturday. Both are university housing.