Fire officials are calling the burning of two parked vehicles just after midnight on Sunday "suspicious."
One Acura and one BMW caught fire while parked near Fort Totten, and were reported at around 12:15 a.m., according to an FDNY official.
A spokesman said it was unusual for parked cars to simply overheat and combust on their own, noting that fire marshals are likely to investigate what caused the flames.
"If there’s nobody driving the car to overheat it, than that would be suspicious," said an FDNY spokesman, who added, "It wouldn’t be a normal way for car to catch on fire."
A witness who lives near 15-42 216th Street, and 15-9 215th Street, where the two cars were situated around the block from one another, believes they were purposely set ablaze.
"Last night in Bayside two cars were apparently firebombed," said witness Mike Sacks, who took photos of the cars after the flames were put out.
Sacks initially thought the fires were the result of lightening from Sunday . "I say apparently because while instinctively we thought the car was struck by lighting during the storm, about a block away another was was set on fire as well. Considering that car had no exterior damage it seemed obvious that lightning wasn't the culprit," he added.
Check back with Patch for updates.
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