Three people are arrested for starting the massive blaze that caused an overpass to COLLAPSE on Interstate 85 in Atlanta as authorities warn there will traffic chaos for MONTHS
Officials said Basil Eleby, Sophia Bruner and Barry Thomas were arrested on Friday in connection with the fire
Eleby faces criminal damage to property charge and Bruner and Thomas were charged with criminal trespass
Police wouldn’t say how the fire was started or why, saying those details would be released at a later date
Following the fire, construction crews were seen Friday restoring the segment of the Atlanta highway
First responders said a portion of Interstate 85 collapsed Thursday due to the fire under the bridge
As the bridge is repaired, traffic is expected to worsen in the city, prompting a ‘travel nightmare’
Aerial video showed smoke billowing from highway as firefighters extinguished blaze alongside the road
By Valerie Edwards and Anna Hopkins
DailyMail.com
1 April 2017
Three people have been arrested in connection with a massive fire under Interstate 85 in Atlanta that caused a portion of the bridge to collapse on Thursday.
Deputy Insurance Commissioner Jay Florence confirms the suspects were arrested Friday.
He identified them as Basil Eleby, Sophia Bruner and Barry Thomas. Eleby faces a charge of criminal damage to property, while Bruner and Thomas were each charged with criminal trespass.
‘We believe they were together when the fire was set and Eleby is the one who set the fire,’ Florence told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Eleby appears to have a criminal past which included a cocaine arrest.
Florence would not discuss how the fire was started or why, saying those details would be released as the investigation progresses.
However, he said the suspects used ‘available materials’ at the site.
All three may have been homeless, Florence added, although it is not clear whether they had lived at the site beneath the highway, according to the AJC.
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