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Five-year-old sets fire
Firefighters douse car after it was set aflame by child by Jennifer Pritchett
NNSL (May 14/97) - A parked car went up in smoke Friday afternoon after a five-year-old boy set it ablaze with a butane lighter.
Deputy fire chief Mike Lowing said that the fire is one of several set by children every year.
"I don't think it's a appropriate to call it arson," he said. "It's more of a case of juvenile fire play."
When firefighters arrived at 47th Street scene around 4:30 p.m., the car was already engulfed in flames. A few dozen children were standing in the area, watching the car burn.
Lowing said firefighters questioned the youths and determined how the blaze began.
The fire department offers a fire safety program for children that has been offered to the five-year-old.
"The program is only given if the parents consent to it," said Lowing. "It's purely voluntary."
Friday's incident was one of 24 to 30 vehicle fires that occur in Yellowknife every year.
The car, an older model Chevrolet, was parked in an apartment complex lot on 47th Street when it was lit. It was destroyed. There were no injuries.
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