Firefighters responded to a structure fire on the weekend that could have had serious consequences for a pet tarantula.
The fire broke out shortly after 5 a.m. Saturday in a rental suite on the 500 block of Harewood Road.
Ennis Mond, Nanaimo Fire Rescue fire prevention officer, said a heating pad under the spider’s plastic terrarium ignited bark mulch on the floor of the terrarium that melted the back of the container.
“The heating pad started a little fire,” Mond said. “There was minor damage. It melted the tarantula’s house and there was a little bit of scorching on the laminate flooring.”
Mond said the fire was mostly out by the firefighters arrived and neither the tarantula or its owner reportedly suffered any injuries.