A small fire Wednesday night outside the garage of a residence on Prescott Avenue has been ruled suspicious, and fire investigators are trying to determine why the fire was set.

Fire crews dispatched at about 9:30 p.m. to the 5000 block of Prescott Avenue on a report of possible structure fire found a minor fire that was quickly determined to be suspicious, Dayton Fire District Chief James Rose said.

“It’s an arson fire. An accelerant of some type was used,” Rose told News Center 7.

There wasn’t much damage, he said, estimating the cost at $700, but a suspect was developed through the preliminary investigation.

When friends and family members of the possible suspect heard about the fire and the suspicions, tempers began to flare and Rose said he called for Dayton police.

“I called in police to keep things calm, to keep tempers from boiling too high,” he said.

No arrest was made, but Rose said firefighters have a witness who saw something. “We have a pretty strong lead at this point,” he said.