Kiln man charged with arson after setting fire over weekend

A Kiln man is in jail, charged with setting a fire in the Kiln community that burned 20 to 25 acres.

Hancock County Sheriff Ricky Adam said 42-year-old Nicholas Melancon was arrested after he was found on scene and admitted setting the fire over the weekend. He was arrested Sunday.

He was taken to the Hancock County jail on a charge of arson. His bond is set at $5,000.

Adam said the deputy county fire marshal, John Albert Evans, charged Melancon.

Firefighters from around Hancock and Harrison counties battled brush fires along Interstate 10 and Bayou La Croix in August after a lack of rain made the entire South Mississippi area very dry. Cities enacted burn bans as a result.