Dangerous firebug on the loose in town

A string of arsons in a small Canterbury town is frightening residents and police say the offender may not be a local.

In the past fortnight there have been five suspicious fires in Kurow, a sleepy settlement of about 400 people, 68km northwest of Oamaru.

The drama started on December 1 when a molotov cocktail was thrown into the backyard of a house but did not explode.

The next night, three cars within 100m were torched, and 24 hours later another car was burned at the site of the molotov attack.

On Tuesday, a hayshed containing 70-80 bales was torched in nearby Duntroon. Police said the blaze was suspicious and possibly connected to last week's attacks.

Kurow constable Craig Bennett said the arsonist "may very well be from out of town" and such a series of incidents was unique.

The town's chief fire officer John Sturgeon said volunteer firefighters were on alert. The fires could get out of hand, and it was lucky no one had been injured.

"The cars were virtually complete burnouts so it's quite serious in that respect."

Detective Sergeant Mike Ryder said Kurow residents were "concerned and worried".

He did not want to speculate on whether or not the arsonist was from Kurow, but said he had narrowed the suspects down to a "fairly narrow circle of offenders".

Some residents are wondering who has a grudge against their community.

"I think a lot of people are frightened," said one woman.

Another resident had a theory about the attacks. "Perhaps they don't like our cars - maybe we need more old Falcons and Valiants."