Katie May
Northern News Services
Published Wednesday, June 11, 2008
SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - The NWT fire marshal is investigating a "suspicious" grass fire that ignited fuel tanks behind Corner Mart on 50 Street Saturday afternoon.
The fire was reported to the Yellowknife Fire Division at 3:11 p.m. and firefighters were in the back alley hosing down the area for about 45 minutes, the deputy fire chief of operations said Monday.
Darcy Hernblad said the small fire caused minimal damage to the building, but that firefighters were concerned because the flames came into contact with two home-heating tanks outside the convenience store.
"It had the potential to be really bad," he said, adding the firefighters on duty acted quickly. "If it got reported five or 10 minutes down the road, it could've been a whole different story."
According to the fire department's report, the fire was suspicious and likely deliberate. The report also stated the building owner said he had seen several kids climbing up the walls of the store from the alley and he said they could be possible suspects.
The fire marshal's office is investigating the fire as one of several small fires in the area recently.