Man accused of starting fire behind downtown Spokane billboard

Police arrested a man early Tuesday morning after officers suspected he started a fire behind a downtown Spokane billboard.

Officers responded around 1 a.m. to a large fire behind the billboard at Sprague Avenue and Browne Street, according to a Spokane police news release.

The Spokane Fire Department extinguished the fire and soaked the surrounding hillside with water, police said. The fire posed a threat to railroad traffic and the downtown area.

Witnesses told police they saw a man state his intention to have a fire and then light one for those gathered at the spot to share, according to the release. The man was arrested on suspicion of second-degree reckless burning, a gross misdemeanor. Police did not name the man because it typically does not identify people charged with a misdemeanor

Firefighters also stopped a 15-acre fire Sunday that started at a transient camp in the Latah Valley, according to the Spokane Fire Department. That fire is under investigation.