Skip to main content

Mill Bay mall fire that shut down Highway 1 considered suspicious, RCMP say

Share

The fire at the vacant Pioneer Square Mall in Mill Bay that shut down Highway 1 for several hours on Friday is considered suspicious, Mounties say.

A spokesperson for BC RCMP tells CTV News Saturday that investigators have not yet found any evidence suggesting the blaze was intentionally set. Rather, the fire is considered suspicious because of "a couple of recent arsons" at the same location.

The Shawnigan Lake detachment is investigating those other files, and is holding the scene from Friday's blaze until the return of a fire investigator on Monday, the spokesperson says.

At least one building was destroyed in the large fire that broke out Friday afternoon. Flames and heavy smoke were visible from a nearby stretch of the Trans-Canada Highway before 1 p.m.

The highway was quickly closed to traffic as firefighters staged trucks on the roadway at the intersection with Shawnigan Lake-Mill Bay Road.

The highway remained closed to traffic in both directions for several hours, reopening to northbound traffic around 6 p.m. and in both directions around 6:30.

CTVNews.ca Top Stories

N.B. man wins $64 million from Lotto 6/49

A New Brunswicker will go to bed Thursday night much richer than he was Wednesday after collecting on a winning lottery ticket he let sit on his bedroom dresser for nearly a year.

Do these exercises for core strength if you can't stomach doing planks

Planks are one of the most effective exercises for strengthening your midsection, as they target all of your major core muscles: the transverse abdominis, rectus abdominis, external obliques and internal obliques. Yet despite the popularity of various 10-minute plank challenges, planking is actually one of the most dreaded core exercises, according to many fitness experts.

Stay Connected