Arson May Be Behind Overnight Fires
Posted August 21, 2007 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Firefighters were kept busy Monday night with two suspicious fires in the city’s west end that could be arson-related.
Crews were called to Lake Shore and 42nd St. at about 10:30pm for two blazes that broke out just metres apart. One was burning behind a closed-down restaurant, the other behind the Legion Hall near the Long Branch GO station.
Meanwhile, a jogger helped save the lives of those living in a series of downtown row houses after a fire broke out on the back deck.
The runner noticed that the deck had gone up in flames early Tuesday and pounded on the door to wake up residents and get them out safely before the blaze spread. Firefighters arrived at Adelaide Place, near Adelaide and Bathurst, just after 6am and made quick work of the fire. Damages were described as extensive. Officials say it appears careless smoking is to blame.
Another fire was set on Monday afternoon at about 1:20pm.
Officers received a call for a fire on Mortimer Avenue near Logan Ave. They arrived to find the rear deck of the home engulfed in flames. The blaze spread and destroyed the rear half of the home and a portion of the attached home.
Tragically, two cats were killed in the fire, but no one else was hurt.
Fire officials suggested arson could be behind the two overnight fires on the Lake Shore and the one set Monday afternoon. Anyone with information can call Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-TIPS (8477).
Arson Prevention
You can’t be on guard 24 hours a day or be expected to stay up nights wondering if an arsonist might be lurking around your property. But there are things you can do to even the odds. Among them:
-Keep doors and windows locked in garages, cars and unoccupied buildings.
-Board up abandoned buildings. Don’t use locks, or other security devices that could trap a person in a building that was on fire.
-Store all flammable liquids such as propane, paints, gasoline, solvents or lawn mowers in an approved storage location such as locked metal cabinets, locked storage units and locked garages (preventing access to children). Keep flammable liquids away from heat sources such as furnaces and any type of heaters.
-Keep matches and lighters out of reach and out of sight of children.
-If you have a back alley or easement, be sure no unauthorized person can get into it.
-Beware of landscaping that may provide cover for someone lurking at night – and a possible source of combustion.
-Ask your neighbours to keep an eye on your home with the promise you’ll do the same for them. Concentate on houses where people are away on vacation.
-Make sure there are no sources of flammable materials left out in the open, like rags, wood, gasoline cans, etc.
-Consider having an emergency collapsible ladder if your bedroom is on an upper floor, to make it easier to escape by an upstairs window.
The behaviour of firestarters usually begins early. See the early signs.
Source: City of Toronto
