DAYTON, Ohio --
Two Dayton families are homeless after two fires ripped through their large duplex Tuesday morning.
The duplex is located at the corner of Burkhardt and Findlay Avenues near East Fifth Street.
Firefighters said the first fire call occurred around midnight. It turned out to be a bedroom fire that affected just one side of the duplex.
Then a few hours later, a woman living on the other side of the duplex heard something at her door.
That woman, identified as "Debra" said, "I got a knock on the door and someone driving past said that there was fire in the attic on that side again in the attic, and we don't have access to that side of the attic."
The woman said she checked on her neighbor but no one was home. She believes the woman and her child left to stay with someone else after the first fire.
Firefighters say the second fire was much more intense than the first one. They say flames and smoke were rolling out of the second floor and the attic.
The house eventually became so filled with flames that supervisors pulled firefighters out of the house. They used ladder trucks with deck guns firing hundreds of gallons a minute into the flames to douse the fire.
Investigators say the roof is almost completely gone and there is a lot of damage inside the home.
Arson investigators were called because there were suspicions that the fire could have been intentionally set.
The Red Cross is providing temporary shelter to the two families that will not be able to stay in the home until extensive repairs are made.
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