Suspicious fires increasingly common in Nanaimo, RCMP and fire department warn
Nanaimo's fire department and RCMP detachment are banding together to deal with a problem that has escalated over the past three months, with more than 20 suspicious fires occurring in the community's downtown core.
"They are arsons, they have been deliberately set,” says Const. Gary O’Brien, spokesperson for Nanaimo RCMP. “Our bike squad is taking the lead on this and they've identified a few people.”
So far, no charges have been laid, but RCMP say it appears a few of the city's homeless population are responsible for some – but not all – of the fires.
"The trouble is escalating and we're moving into the warmer weather so there's an educational piece involved,” O’Brien says. “We're telling the owners that you have to look at your dumpsters and remove any flammable materials.”
O'Brien and Nanaimo Fire Chief Tim Doyle say the problem could also be felt by residential home owners.
"We'd like everyone to make sure they remove all the combustibles around the perimeter of their building,” Doyle says. “Make sure they don't leave any cardboard, pallets, cooking oil, styrofoam packing or other garbage that could be used to light fires."
The chief is also asking people to practice good landscaping by keeping their lawns short and any vegetation away from buildings so it doesn't catch businesses or residences on fire.
Doyle says he is concerned about the amount of resources the preventable fires are taking up.
"It is frustrating and it is a challenge,” Doyle says. “It stretches our resources thin and it has an impact on public safety and an impact on first responders."
One of those affected by the fires is Ajac's Equipment owner Tom Halsall.
He says his business was hit by arson twice in the early morning of June 4, beginning around 2 a.m.
"The firemen came the first time and put the dumpster fire out and found the guy and the police hauled him away and then the other fire happened a couple of hours later around 4:30," Halsall says.
In the second incident, some packing materials were set on fire and the blaze made its way inside a portion of the building that was used for storage.
"There was three customers’ tractors that were actually damaged in the fire,” he says. “It was mostly storage. We have accessories, baggers, carts, lawnmowers, different things like that.”
Halsall says even though he is insured, he will now have to wait several months before he can get permits through city hall to do work inside the building, including removing damaged items and checking for any asbestos in the older structure. He says he and others are frustrated by the escalating problem.
"When they catch them, there's nothing that's done,” Halsall says. “The government's hands are tied. They can't put them in jail, they can't treat them, they just send them out in the streets and they do more. It's just crazy."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction overturned by N.Y. appeals court
New York's highest court on Thursday overturned Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction, reversing a landmark ruling of the #MeToo era in determining the trial judge improperly allowed women to testify about allegations against the ex-movie mogul that weren't part of the case.
BREAKING Honda to get up to $5B in govt help for EV battery, assembly plants
Honda is set to build an electric vehicle battery plant next to its Alliston, Ont., assembly plant, which it is retooling to produce fully electric vehicles, all part of a $15-billion project that is expected to include up to $5 billion in public money.
MPP Sarah Jama asked to leave Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment that is banned at Queen’s Park.
CTE: Researchers believe widespread brain injury may contribute to veteran suicide rate
Researchers are working to better understand if some Canadian military veterans may be suffering from Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, also known as CTE -- a disorder previously found in the brains of professional football and hockey players after their death.
1 arrested in northern Alberta during public shelter order
Residents of John D'Or Prairie, a community on the Little Red River Cree Nation in northern Alberta, were told to take shelter Thursday morning during a police operation.
Secret $70M Lotto Max winners break their silence
During a special winner celebration near their hometown, Doug and Enid shared the story of how they discovered they were holding a Lotto Max ticket worth $70 million and how they kept this huge secret for so long.
Remains from a mother-daughter cold case were found nearly 24 years later, after a deathbed confession from the suspect
A West Virginia father is getting some sense of closure after authorities found the remains of his young daughter and her mother following a deathbed confession from the man believed to have fatally shot them nearly two decades ago.
New deep-water channel allows first ship to pass Key bridge wreckage in Baltimore
The first cargo ship passed through a newly opened deep-water channel in Baltimore on Thursday after being stuck in the harbor since the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed four weeks ago, halting most maritime traffic through the city's port.
First in Canada procedure performed at London, Ont. hospital
A London man has become the first person in Canada to receive a robotic assisted surgery on his spine. Dave Myeh suffered from debilitating, chronic back pain that led to sciatica in his right now and extreme pain in his lower back.