More than 100 people attended a Sheraden community meeting last night to address concerns about the eight fires that occurred there in June.

Pittsburgh District 2 Councilwoman Theresa Smith organized the 90-minute-long meeting at the Sheraden Senior Center to talk about the suspicious fires in six homes and two trash cans in the past month. No injuries were reported in any of the fires, and only two occurred in occupied homes, Mrs. Smith said.

After the second or third fire, Mrs. Smith said she decided to call a meeting to address the incidents.

One of the problems people identified is the number of abandoned properties and vehicles in the neighborhood, due in part to the high amount of house foreclosures in the area.

Pittsburgh's Bureau of Building Inspections listed 16 homes in Sheraden as abandoned, and residents submitted an additional list of properties they believe are empty.

The city will begin the process of demolishing those buildings starting today, Mrs. Smith said.

"The feeling going into the meeting was anger," Mrs. Smith said of the 150 people who attended the session. "The feeling going out of the meeting was at least something was being done."

Pittsburgh Fire Chief Darryl Jones said the arson squad is investigating the fires, which investigators believe may be the work of more than one arsonist.

Mr. Jones said he warned people to be vigilant and to dial 911 if they saw anything suspicious, but said the arson squad is working diligently to solve the crimes.

"I wanted the people to know that we have some true professionals working on these cases and taking it seriously," he said.

Mr. Jones said he cautioned residents to remove debris and lumber from their yard and keep trash away from buildings. The fire department also provided residents at the meeting with smoke detectors.