Suspicious fires spark speculation

(Map has been updated to include suspicious fires up to October 27, 2014)

Three suspicious fires in less than three weeks has Vernon residents concerned the arsonist that plagued the area this summer may be back, but RCMP say there is no reason to believe that.

“With many of the fires this summer there was nobody in or around any of them, whereas two of the latest fires, people have been in close proximity, who we have spoken too,” explains RCMP Spokesman Gord Molendyk. “Is there a pattern? No, at this point we can’t say there is a pattern or anything linking these to what happened this spring and summer.”

The most recent fire was this past Saturday when an abandoned barn caught fire.

“Investigators continue to investigate this fire to determine the cause of it,” says Molendyk. “Investigators are treating this fire as suspicious until they are able to determine the cause.”

There was an older house on the same property located in the 100 block of Kalamalka Lake Road that was not affected by the fire

Just days before that, a building under construction and a dumpster were set ablaze on Oct 16 and 21 respectively.

Molendyk says the people found around the fires have been questioned and are considered persons of interest. 

Photo: Paul Cousins

Abandoned barn fire in the 100 block of Kalamalka Lake Road