4:22 p.m. | 
Arson investigators have their hands full after another fire broke out on TV Hill on Tuesday night, just blocks from where a blaze had threatened homes the night before.
On Monday, crews were dispatched at about 5:45 p.m. to the vicinity of Loma Alta Drive and Canon Perdido Street below TV Hill, and were able to knock down the flames fairly quickly, according to Acting Fire Chief Pat McElroy. That fire burned two to three acres and was controlled in about 20 minutes.
On Tuesday night, a blaze broke out at 8:30 p.m., this one also on TV Hill off Loma Alta, about four blocks from the original fire.
“We’re looking at these fires as deliberately set,” said Joe Poire, fire marshal for the City of Santa Barbara.
There was speculation that the fire may have been caused by transients in the area, and TV Hill has been the site of homeless camps in the past.
“We never viewed Monday as a campfire,” he said, adding that the department is asking for anyone with any information about the fire to come forward. “We know there are a couple of witnesses that were there that we haven’t heard from.”
For example, he said, one young man came up after the first witness and took several cell phone pictures of the fire and left.
“We’re interested in talking with him not only to have a look at the pictures but also to hear what he saw,” Poire said.
Anyone with information about the fires is encouraged to call the Santa Barbara City Fire Department at 805.965.5254.
— Noozhawk staff writer Lara Cooper can be reached at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
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