Mill Bay mall fire that shut down Highway 1 considered suspicious, RCMP say
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
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Orca calf that was trapped in B.C. lagoon for weeks swims free
An orca whale calf that has been stranded in a B.C. lagoon for weeks after her pregnant mother died swam out on her own early Friday morning.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
Powerful tornado tears across Nebraska, weather service warns of 'catastrophic' damage
Devastating tornadoes tore across parts of eastern Nebraska and northeast Texas Friday as a multi-day severe thunderstorm event ramped up in the central United States, injuring at least three people.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Trump's lawyers try to discredit testimony of prosecution's first witness in hush money trial
Donald Trump's defence team attacked the credibility Friday of the prosecution's first witness in his hush money case, seeking to discredit testimony detailing a scheme between Trump and a tabloid to bury negative stories to protect the Republican's 2016 presidential campaign.