A family of seven and their landlord were displaced in one of two blazes fire crews responded to in the south end of Nanaimo overnight.
According to Karen Fry, Nanaimo Fire Rescue chief, crews responded to a report of a structure fire in the 60 block of Strickland Street last night at around 9:30 p.m. Fry didn’t have specifics on the damage, but it was enough that the residents won’t be able to live in the residence. They will be displaced for a while, she said.
There were no injuries and Fry said residents had a working smoke alarm, which was crucial in alerting them and getting them out of the house.
“The investigation is complete and it was electrical in nature, so it was accidental,” said Fry.
The second fire occurred at 3:45 a.m. this morning at the old Jolly Miner Bar and Grill site on Haliburton Street, according to Fry.
“It was contained to the outside of the building,” said Fry. “There was moderate damage … but the building’s secure and we’ll be doing an investigation probably after the weekend on it.”
Fry hesitated to say the fire was suspicious, but did say the fire was at the structure’s exterior and it was shuttered.
“I don’t know if it’s suspicious or not. It started on the outside, so there’s nothing there that would normally start a building on fire. It is a vacant building … it’s not accidental, generally speaking,” said Fry. “It’s not like people are inside it.”
reporter@nanaimobulletin.com
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