A fire that broke out late Thursday night at a home in Coquitlam was deliberately set by someone who knew the occupants, police said Friday.
Crews were called to the fire in the River Springs neighbourhood, in the 1900 block of Keith Place and Parkland Drive, just before 11:30 p.m.
The house was fully involved when crews got there and smoke and flames could be seen billowing from the roof.
The homeowners were not inside the residence when the fire started, police said, however, the family dog was home.
Luckily, Coquitlam Fire and Rescue crews were able to safely get the dog out but it did suffer minor injuries during the incident, police said.
Coquitlam RCMP said officers have found and arrested the suspect.
That person remains in police custody until their next court appearance.
Intentionally setting a residence on fire shows a complete disregard for the safety of others,
Sgt. Karrie Ellis of Coquitlam RCMP said in a release. We are happy that no one was seriously injured and that officers were able to make a swift arrest of the suspect.
Fire crews said it took 90 minutes to contain the blaze and it spread to a second home and damaged others.
“So we probably could’ve lost up to four homes, so very devastating in River Springs,” Darren Berg, River Springs strata council chairman, said. “We’re a very tight-knit community. There’s about 468 houses in this strata. This is the first large fire we’ve had the 45-plus years River Springs has been here.”
Neighbours said the fire caused a lot of commotion.
“Nobody was hurt based on the news that I have heard from the neighbours,” neighbour Mehdi Kamali told Global News. “But it was quite dramatic, the fire was huge and the smell was really bad.”
Anyone with information about this incident is asked to contact the Coquitlam RCMP at 604-945-1550 and quote file number 2023-4413.