Oliver pot shop hit by arsonists for second time in just over a year

Pot shop hit by arsonists

A cannabis shop owner in Oliver is pleading for help identifying the arsonists who set fire to his store last week.

Security video from The Pot Doctor, an unregulated shop on Osoyoos Indian Band land, shows two individuals on the premises on May 3 at 2:21 a.m., who came onto the property and lit up the structure.

Oliver Fire Department chief Bob Graham said his crews responded to a call at 2:46 a.m. after someone driving by the shop saw the flames.

“It was a fire primarily on the sign on the roof of the building. The building was a metal Sea-Can, the sign was up on top, a wood sign and that was on fire, we extinguished that. So there was no fire inside the building. It was all just contained to the outside. It was determined later that [the incident] was an arson. So they had video surveillance of someone throwing flammable liquid on it,” Graham said.

This is the second time the business has been targeted in just over a year. On Feb. 22, 2022, an arsonist was caught on camera lighting the inside of the shop on fire.

Graham said that fire crews do not know immediately when an incident is arson, natural causes or an accidental fire. That is discovered during the subsequent investigation. A fire investigator will first investigate it on behalf of the Fire Commissioner's Office, sometimes alongside RCMP.

In this case, RCMP were called to the site after fire crews determined the suspicious nature. Oliver detachment commander Sgt. Don Wrigglesworth confirmed the matter is under investigation by police.

Anyone with information is asked to contact local RCMP at 250-498-3422.

Graham added that while the department has not seen an uptick in arson activity recently, the wildfire danger is still a pressing concern.

“That particular one on May 3 happened in the middle of a lightning storm, so there was heavy rainfall. The probability of it going into a grass fire was pretty low at that moment, but on a day like today, even though we've had lots of rain, the grass is really dry. The ground cover here is really dry and a wildland fire could happen anywhere, anytime from an accidental cause or intentional.”

The fire department has already responded to six grass fires this spring, all of which were determined to be accidental, as the result of burning piles that had grown out of control.

“This [area] is just ripe for a fire. We have been out of the fire for a few years of major proportions here. So everything is growing up nice and green and as soon as it warms up, all the green grass turns brown, and is ready to burn.”

According to the latest data from Agriculture Canada’s monthly drought report, the southern and central interior parts of the province received slightly below-normal precipitation in April. However, snowmelt continued to provide good stream flow resulting in minimal change to drought conditions.

They said the majority of southern British Columbia remained in "Moderate Drought (D1)," with a few small pockets of "Severe Drought (D2)."

Graham reminds everyone to be conscious of their activities heading forward to best protect against any human-caused fires.

“If you are still a smoker, don't throw your cigarette butts or your smoking material out of the car onto the roadside. We get calls every year for someone that's thrown smoking material out on the side of the road that's resulted in a grass fire and, in some cases, very large fires.”

Photo: The Pot Doctor