Arson is suspected as the cause of a Thursday evening, July 3, house fire on the 1500 bock of Melnyk Road in Arrow Heights.
A 911 call at 10:13 pm brought a swift response from Fire Rescue Service personnel who found a fire blazing away in the basement of the home.
“Upon arrival Fire Crews quickly attacked a basement fire from the exterior and shortly thereafter an interior attack team extinguished the fire in the basement, while another search team completed a search on the second floor Fire Chief Rob Girard said in a statement.
Fire crews ventilated the structure and began quick overhaul of the residence putting out areas that the fire extended into.
He said the lone occupant — who was not the homeowner — of the residence was “in police custody when fire crews first arrived on scene.
The fire appears to be a case of arson and it is the subject of a joint investigation by the RCMP and Revelstoke Fire Rescue Services.
“It was a tricky fire for our crews as there were a number of 20 lb. propane bottles and various fuels in the basement of the residence making for a potentially dangerous situation and explosive situation or our firefighters and the adjacent neighboring homes,” Girard said. “Our quick fire attack made all the difference on this fire.”
Firefighters extinguished and overhauled the fire in just under 1.5 hours, with no injuries to any of the 24 personnel who responded with three fire trucks, the Ladder 6 truck and two command vehicles.
Chief Girard also used the statement to remind residents to have a working smoke alarm in their homes at all times.
“It’s a sound we all can live with,” he said.Arson suspected oin
