Visalia Police are on alert over the threat of gang retaliation.
Police say gang members set homes and cars on fire with Molotov cocktails Monday night.
Alondra Oliva and her mom, Anna Hernandez, were asleep when someone hurled firebombs through windows. "Everything burned except the Bible," said Anna Hernandez. "Our neighbor just came and started knocking on our door saying your house is burning," said Oliva.
Firefighters put out fires at four other homes and inside two cars.
Damage was limited to about $14,000 altogether.
All the fires were started by chemical concoctions packed into bottles.
Neighbors say gang members left threatening notes. "The little boy that lives there told us that there was a bottle that said, 'this is just the beginning and there is going to be more of this coming up,'" said neighbor Daniel Reyez.
Police say gangs are targeting specific communities. "Over the last few weeks we have seen an increase in gang tensions and in that area, particularly between two rival gangs," said Visalia Police Sergeant Amy Watkins.
The Red Cross put victims up in a hotel for a few nights.
Some neighbors say they plan to move to escape the recent upsurge in violence. "Every week something new happens.... Bad, bad, bad things," Hernandez said.
