A Palm Desert woman has been sentenced for igniting a dangerous strip mall fire in 2024 that nearly trapped firefighters inside, officials confirmed.
The convicted arsonist, identified as Chi Lyu, was sentenced on June 3 to six years and four months in state prison, according to the Corona Fire Department.
Lyu set fire to the Rimpau Avenue Strip Mall on the morning of Aug. 11, 2024.
Crews responded to reports of a structure fire at a retail strip mall in the 1500 block of Rimpau Avenue at around 7:20 a.m., fire officials said.
Firefighters arrived to find flames and heavy smoke showing through the roof of the strip mall, and crews began heading into the building to initiate an interior attack.
“However,” the department said in a release, “While crews were inside, a portion of the overhang/soffit collapsed just outside of their point of entry.”
Details are limited, but officials said no firefighters were injured as a result.
Investigators later determined that the fire had been intentionally set, ultimately leading to Lyu’s arrest, conviction and sentencing.
As part of her sentencing, officials said Lyu was ordered to pay victim restitution and register as an arsonist upon her release.
