Firefighters respond to a fire at 1723 Riverside Drive in South Williamsport on Monday. PHILIP HOLMES/Sun-Gazette

A South Williamsport man has been arrested and incarcerated on felony arson-related charges for allegedly setting a fire Monday afternoon in his basement, according to borough police Sgt. Daniel Boyd.

Paul A. Best III, 24, of 1723 Riverside Drive, admitted to setting the fire, which broke out just after 3 p.m., investigators said.

Best told police that he “used a regular small lighter to set fire to his muck boot. He stated he tried to put the fire out, but it grew out of control. Best stated that he freaked out and did not know what to do,” Boyd wrote in an affidavit.

Best then got in his car and “left the scene,” Boyd said in a criminal complaint.

Best lives in the house with his girlfriend and three children, who were not home at the time, Boyd said.

Williamsport firefighters were the first on the scene and were faced with a moderate amount of smoke on the first floor and in the basement. The firefighters had the fire extinguished in a matter of minutes.

Cpl. Nathan Birth, a state police fire marshal, responded to the scene and determined that the fire was intentionally set, Boyd said.

At Boyd’s request, Best agreed to be interviewed at police headquarters, where he is alleged to have admitted to setting the fire.

“He failed to take reasonable measures to put out or control the fire, and he failed to call 911,” the investigator said.

Best was arraigned about 2 a.m. Tuesday before District Judge Denise Dieter on felon charges of arson and reckless burning plus two misdemeanors- failure to control and report a dangerous fire and failure to prevent a catastrophe. He was committed to the Lycoming County Prison in lieu of $75,000 bail.