Man in court after allegedly setting fires along I-5

A Woodland man suspected of setting fires while walking along Interstate 5 south of Ridgefield on Wednesday made a first appearance Friday in Clark County Superior Court.

Samuel U. Morales, 57, appeared on suspicion of second-degree arson in connection with the incident.

At about 3 p.m. Wednesday, a Washington State Department of Transportation employee reported seeing a man walking along the roadway’s shoulder and lighting brush on fire near Dolan Road at Bird’s English Nursery, according to the Washington State Patrol.

The employee, Dean Strey, said he saw a man, later identified as Morales, standing near the fire with a shovel, and assumed he was attempting to put out the fire, court documents said. Strey said he stopped to help and that’s when he noticed Morales was setting grass on fire with a lighter, according to a probable cause affidavit filed in Superior Court.

Officers with the Clark County Sheriff’s Office responded and detained Morales. He was taken to PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center in Vancouver for a health evaluation, court records said.

The fire burned about 1 to 2 acres of grass and trees. No structures were damaged.

Morales was subsequently arrested on suspicion of second-degree reckless burning.

The prosecution on Friday said that Morales had a District Court warrant at the time of his arrest.

During his hearing, Judge Robert Lewis appointed Jeff Barrar of the Vancouver Defenders to represent Morales.

Lewis set bail at $30,000. Morales is scheduled to be arraigned Sept. 4.