Fires intentionally set at 2 churches in North Carolina, officials say

Authorities are investigating suspected arson after fires were intentionally set at two churches in rural Cleveland County, North Carolina, according to officials.

The incidents occurred on Friday night between 9 and 10 p.m. in the Casar area, about 55 miles west of Charlotte, according to the Cleveland County Sheriff’s Office. Deputies responded with local firefighters after flames were reported at Tabernacle Baptist Church and Calvary’s Cross Baptist Church.

Both churches sustained damage but no major destruction after citizens spotted the fires early and extinguished them, the sheriff’s office said.

The fires remain under investigation. Authorities asked anyone with information or who noticed suspicious activity in the area at the time to contact the Cleveland County Sheriff’s Office.

The incidents follow a deadly attack last month at a Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Grand Blanc, Michigan, where a gunman drove into the building, opened fire on congregants, and set it ablaze, killing four people and injuring eight before being shot by police.