Arson suspected in blaze that burned Charlotte firefighter on Monday

Arson is suspected in a blaze that burned a firefighter on Monday at an abandoned campground on Camp Stewart Road in east Charlotte.

The firefighter suffered a second-degree burn to his hand and was treated and released at a local hospital, Capt. Jackie Gilmore of the Charlotte Fire Department said Tuesday.

The campground has had several intentionally set fires over the past couple months, and all are considered related, according to Gilmore.

Firefighters had limited access to the site and had to shuttle water and lay over 1,500 feet of large diameter hose on the ground to get water to the fire, he said.

Heavy smoke was billowing from woods in the 5500 block of the road when firefighters arrived just after 1 p.m. Twenty-seven firefighters controlled the blaze in about an hour, Gilmore said.

Anyone with information about the fires is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 704-334-1600.

This story was originally published January 2, 2018 at 9:06 PM with the headline "Arson suspected in blaze that burned Charlotte firefighter on Monday."