A neighbor of a house that caught fire Sunday morning in rural Ceres was arrested and charged with arson, the Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Department reported.

Modesto Fire Department responded to a flurry of 911 calls first placed at 8:43 a.m. about the fire that broke out at 3318 Service Road east of Moore Road. Fighting the fire required five fire engines, a quint truck and two battalion chiefs dispatched to the scene.

The firefighters worked aggressively to gain access to the property and extinguished the fire before it spread beyond the house and into nearby buildings and belongings.

The Stanislaus Regional Fire Investigation Unit responded to the scene to determine that the fire was deliberately set. The Sheriff’s Department helped investigate which led to the arrest of Fredman Leon Schmitz, 46, of Ceres, a neighbor of the property.

Ceres Police were on scene and provided traffic control during the incident.