Aug. 25, 2020 6:30a
(WGTD)---After an accidental fire earlier this month, and two arson fires overnight, over half of Kenosha's uptown business district is now gone.
A fire and explosion tore apart the Danish Brotherhood's home for some 110 years on the corner of 22nd Ave. and 63rd St.
A separate blaze destroyed a large building or a set of interconnected buildings to the south that housed numerous shops, including Rode Camera.
The fires were part of another night of arsons, vandalism and looting in the wake of Sunday evening's police shooting of Jacob Blake.
Other buildings were lost, including the state's probation and parole office on 60th St. and a nearby used furniture store. In addition, several vehicles were burned in a used car lot in the neighborhood.
Hundreds of young people roamed the streets at will Monday night and early Tuesday morning, despite a National Guard presence and a curfew.
Another target was the ornamental light poles along Sheridan Rd. near the courthouse. They were knocked down. One vandal reportedly suffered a head injury when one fell on top of him.
Three people were arrested with looted merchandise in their possession after leaving the Target store in Pleasant Prairie.
One or two others may have been arrested for trying to start a library on fire.
There were other reports of fires and looting, and fire departments from a wide area were called in to help out, including a crew from North Chicago.
Police did what they could to respond to so many calls.
A WGTD reporter early Tuesday morning witnessed three squads converge on two or three suspicious vehicles in the parking lot of the closed C-V-S store at Washington Rd. and 22nd Ave. The drivers of two of the vehicles crashed into each other in their haste to flee. A chase went north and east of the store. It wasn't immediately clear how it ended.
National Guard troops supported firefighters and also protected the courthouse.
There were unconfirmed reports of armed individuals in vehicles leading some of the protests.
Earlier in the evening, dozens of vehicles with covered license plates were observed traveling in a caravan through Racine County, according to scanner reports.
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