Police: Wausau fire intentionally set 

WAUSAU — A fire at a home on Wausau’s west side is being investigated as an “intentional act of arson,” according to the Wausau Police Department.

Emergency responders from the Wausau Fire Department and Wausau Police Department were called to the blaze shortly after 4 a.m. on Tues., Aug. 29 at 1019 S. Fourth Avenue. Police said the fire was intentionally set in a common entryway to both the upper and lower apartments in the building.

The tenants of the lower apartment, including three young children, were able to escape the home, police said, while the upper apartment tenant was not home. At the time the fire was discovered, a suspect was observed running from the back of the house by one of the residents.

Investigators believe this residence was targeted, but the motive is not clear at this point.

Police describe the suspect as a lighter-skinned man with a slender build who is in his mid-20s to mid-30s. He is either bald or has very short hair and is clean shaven, wearing glasses. The man wore a white tank top and shorts.