ANDERSON, S.C. --
Two teenage boys were charged after investigators said the pair tried to set Homeland Park Elementary School on fire on Monday.
Anderson Fire Chief Billy Gibson said that firefighters were called to the school early Monday morning. He said that firefighters walking around the school found that flammable liquids had been poured around the building. He said that firefighters also found several pieces of burned paper that had been used to try to ignite the liquids.
Gibson said that a bystander noticed the two teens trying to start the fire and told deputies. The teens were arrested after a brief foot chase, he said.
The teens, 13 and 14, were charged with second-degree arson. Their names were not released because of their age.
"I don't think these two individuals realized how dangerous what they were doing was," Gibson said. "If they had these liquids on their clothes, they could have not only set fire to the school, but also to themselves and been seriously injured."
Gibson said that they are also looking at several other fires in the area that investigators believe may have been started by the pair.
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