String of Fires Under Investigation

By 250 News

Prince George, B.C. – With five  suspicious fires in the City of Prince George,  over the past year, the Prince George Fire and Rescue  Department and the  RCMP are expressing  concern.

( at right, Deputy Fire Chief John Lane  at news conference)

• Pine Street, April 5^th, 2009
• Pine Street, December 5^th, 2009
• Lombardy Trailer Park April 8^th 2010
• Diefenbaker Drive, April 10^th, 2010
• Wilson Crescent, April 11^th 2010.

Three of the fires are of particular concern,  two on Pine Street and one on Diefenbaker Drive.  All  occurred in hours of darkness,  all at residences that were fully occupied.  “We are very concerned about the  danger of people being trapped in their homes” says Deputy Fire Chief John Lane.

In all three fires the  flames were set  with combustibles that were easily accessible. In one case, cardboard  boxes stacked outside the home were used, in another, a small fuel can and in one case garbage piled outside was used. 

There are some tips for prevention  to  avoid becoming a victim of fire:

• dispose of combustible garbage immediately
• combustibles that must be stored,  store then  in s a secure location out of sight,
• Use motion detection lighting
• Report suspicious activity
• Have functioning smoke detectors on all levels of all homes.

Deputy Chief Lane says its difficult to say  if there is one   or a number of people  responsible, but there are  similarities and all five fires were deliberately set.  “They are opportunistic, the person is using the fuels that are there”  says Lane.  He adds, people shouldn’t panic about this, but should be diligent in making sure their properties are as clear from debris as possible, especially at this time of the year when there are grass fires.”

“The message we as a fire service want to get across is the risk to  personal safety, and anything a  homeowner can do to  help  prevent this activity  would be prudent.  Life is very precious. ”

RCMP spokesperson, Gary Godwin  says all but one of the fires had been set in garages or shed,  and the  one common thread so far is that they have all  taken place in the VLA area.  An arson investigator  has  been assigned to the case and  is reviewing  all the files. 

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