Okanagan house labeled as “problem home” destroyed in fire

A West Kelowna home was destroyed by what officials are calling a suspicious fire early Wednesday at a duplex.

“We’re looking at a couple of points on the building right now in terms of where the fire appears to have started and our investigators are here working along with investigators from the RCMP and still trying to get to the bottom of this, ” said fire chief Jason Brolund.

The blaze was spotted by RCMP shortly after 2:30 a.m. at the duplex on Last Road and fire crews made sure the building was evacuated as the fire grew.

“Being the time of night that it was, we were concerned that there would be people sleeping inside, so that prompted a full response from the fire department,” Brolund said.

Six people from the damaged side of the duplex along with three others in the adjacent unit all managed to get out.

The adjacent apartment building was also evacuated as the fire came perilously close to that structure.

“The flames were almost directly against that building so obviously that would have compounded an already difficult problem,” Brolund said.

The house is well known to neighbours and police who have been called there countless times over the years.

“This has been frankly a problem residence in West Kelowna for the last 15 years and police have been here frankly hundreds of times over that period of time,” said West Kelowna RCMP Sgt. Greg Woodcox. “There’s been search warrants executed in relation to drug trafficking, disturbances, assaults.”

Neighbours including Ibrahim Sumrain hopeful the home’s destruction will result in less criminal activity in an area home to many seniors.

“When you get to my age and you live in areas like this. What do you hope for…. safety, quiet time, good neighbourhood…ingredients that were not there so I hope good things are yet to come,” Sumrain told Global News.

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In all, 26 firefighters in five trucks were called to the fire.

The investigation is ongoing.

The displaced residents are now in the care of Emergency Support Services.