Cars at two salvage lots were set ablaze late Wednesday night in Story County.

Richard Thompson, owner of Thompson Auto Parts, 955 Main St. in McCallsburg, said 130 to 150 cars were damaged at his lot.

“I was in the house and saw a little glare on the side,” Thompson said. “[The cars] were in flames quick. They were 12 to 15 feet high in just a split second.”

Thompson said cars were set on fire in his lot last week at almost the same time.

“There’s just somebody around that has it in for salvaged or impounded cars,” Thompson said. “It doesn’t look very good right now. They are pretty determined they’re going to get all of [the cars] — one way or another.”

There isn’t much Thompson said he can do to keep people from setting fires. Last week, Thompson said area firefighters emptied the water tower, causing the school to shut down.

“A lot of money is going down the drain for the fire department, water and salvage lots,” Thompson said. “There were 175 firemen last night — that’s two-thirds of the population of McCallsburg.”

The second fire was discovered after 10 p.m. at Carney & Sons Inc., 1010 S. Duff Ave., said owner Tom Carney.

“Luckily only 10 or 15 of [the cars] were burnt,” Carney said. “We were real fortunate. The fires were extinguished quickly, [but] it was a lot of mess and effort.”

Carney said he also hates to see the fire department working so hard.

“It’s a total waste of resources,” he said.

Neither Carney nor Thompson said they had any idea what the motive behind the fires could be.

“Until they catch these guys, any car anywhere is vulnerable,” Carney said.

Both men said they had heard of other fires nearby. Carney said an abandoned car was set on fire near the Skunk River. Thompson said a couple of hay bales were burned near Nevada.

Most of the fuel has been drained out of the cars in the salvage lots, making explosion minimal, Thompson said. However, plastic and other materials used in the construction of new cars cause fire to spread quickly.

“I don’t know why they’d do it,” Thompson said. “It’s just somebody who likes to see cars burn, I guess.”

Ames Fire Chief Clint Petersen was unavailable for comment Thursday.

Since Oct. 13 there have been nine incidents of salvage yard car fires in Story County. A multi-jurisdictional task force has been formed to investigate the rash of suspicious fires. Anyone with information regarding the car fires is encouraged to contact the Ames Police Department at 239-5132 or 239-5133.