A Kenai woman was arrested after police say she intentionally set fire to a home in Kenai.
The Kenai Police Department and Kenai Fire Department responded to a home on Haida Street Tuesday after reports of a house fire. With assistance from the Nikiski Fire Department and Central Emergency Services, the fire was extinguished but the home received extensive smoke, fire and water damage. Nobody was inside the home at the time of the fire, but a housecat was found dead inside. Police say wooden matches were also found on the ground outside the residence.
Nearby security footage showed a female at the home shortly before the fire was reported. A police investigation determined 53-year-old Kimberly Rodgers of Kenai started the fire. Police say Rodgers lived in the home until earlier this year with a partner, who she’s now separated from. The partner still lives in the home.
According to police, Rodgers entered the home through the back door. While collecting belongings and looking around, police say Rodgers found a pair of underwear she believed belongs to another woman. She then placed the underwear and a few other items on the floor of the home and ignited them with matches and a compressed gas torch. Police say Rodgers left the home after she became frightened by the fire.
Rodgers was arrested on counts of domestic violence arson and domestic violence burglary. The fire department says the cause of the fire is still under investigation.
