Jorge Barrera
Northern News Services

Arviat (July 18/01) - A resident in an Arviat elders' home has a new mattress after a four-year-old boy lit a mattress on fire, triggering an evacuation and a visit from the fire department on July 6.

Fire chief Robert Ulayok reported it was around 1:50 p.m. when the boy, visiting an elder, took a lighter from his mother's pocket and set the mattress on fire.

The room and the residence were evacuated when the fire alarm was pulled.

After the evacuation the home's residents spent the next couple of hours waiting outside while firefighters doused the flames with fire extinguishers and cleaned up the room.

According to Ulayok, it took 15 minutes to kill the flames and considerably longer to clean up the room.

Ulayok said firefighters took the burned mattress outside to cool down and later it was tossed in the dump.

RCMP Const. Mark Tindall said the fire consumed about 40 per cent of the mattress.

"It wasn't a major fire by any means," said Tindall.

"There were no major damages except to the mattress," he added.

Tindall said no charges are pending.

The elders returned to the home at around 3:30 p.m.," said Ulayok.

Officials at the elders' home refused to comment on the fire and ventured only to say it should be assumed the mattress was replaced.

Tindall said the person who pulled the fire alarm did not overreact because the fire could have spread and done more damage.

It cost $1,110 for the cleanup and a new mattress. The bill was footed by the Arviat Housing Corporation.