Valley Township supervisors met in emergency session Saturday morning to declare a State of Emergency following two early-morning, porch fires on Church Street, bringing to five the number of arsons in the township that borders Coatesville.

The two Valley fires along with two other porch fires, one in Modena and on in Sadsbury Township, yesterday were all declared arson by the county Arson Task Force.

""We are going door-to-door and sending out e-mails trying to notify everyone," said Patrice Proctor, township supervisors' chairman.

Six days ago Coatesville declared a State of Emergency after 15 homes on Fleetwood Street were destroyed in an arson-related fire. Sixteen arson-related fires have occurred in Coatesville this month, bring the total number of arson-related fires since last summer to 31. One fire on Strode Avenue resulted in the death of an 83-year-old woman who has survived a Nazi labor camp in her native Poland.

Proctor said the State of Emergency resolution adopted by the supervisors calls for similar action from its residents as does Coatesville's. She said the township is asking residents to turn on their porch lights, remove trash from around their homes, and to report all suspicious behavior to police.

"These fires share a commonality with the fires already under investigation, but at this point we will not say that they are directly linked to the arsonist or arsonists in Coatesville," said John Hageman, special agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).

Yesterday's porch fires were located at 236 Church St., Valley Township, 12:35 a.m., side porch; 248 Church St, Valley Township, 12:42 a.m., front porch; 7 Smith Farm Lane, Sadsbury Township, 3:03 a.m., side porch; and 14 Woodland Ave., front porch.

Proctor said a duplex of Gap Road was destroyed last year by a fire since determined to be arson. The other two arsons took place on Madison Avenue and Charles Street, both streets that being in Coatesville but extend into Valley.

In Coatesville firefighters from the city and neighboring fire companies yesterdasy were going door-to-door handing out smoke detectors.