Structure Fire Challenges Responders

Sooke Firefighters were paged out in the early hours on Friday, Oct 7 at about 2:30 a.m. for a reported structure fire. While enroute Langford Dispatch advised that the house was fully involved and there was a possibility of someone on side. Sooke RCMP arrived first and quickly evacuated the neighbours on either side of the rapidly burning home. C-1 and B-1 arrived next and command was established. E-1 arrived on scene and went into master stream operations to try to knock down the main body of fire and protect the "D" exposure. L-1 followed soon behind and picked up a hydrant to supply E-1 with a water source. 2 hand lines were pulled as well as the mini-monitor. The fire was quickly consuming the house with sections of the roof already collapsing from the intensity of it all. E-2 arrived next on scene taking a second hydrant that supplied water to L-1 as it had positioned its aerial above the blaze and quickly put the ladder pipe into operation. E 1-2, Sq-1 and Sq-2 had now also arrived with additional firefighters. With about 2500 gallons a minute now flowing, the blaze slowly came under control. With air packs running low and manpower stretched Otter Point FD was called in for mutual aid. With 22 Sooke Firefighters, 5 Otter Point members, EHS and RCMP to assist the fire was brought under control. Hot spots continued to flare up for a couple more hours. Crews rotated out for breakfast at the fire hall. A search was not possible due to the intense fire, however it was determined from relatives that nobody was in fact home at the time of the call. Crews working the "C" side of the structure observed that the sliding glass door and kitchen window were already open on arrival. The RCMP also reported that the garage door was open on their arrival. With this suspicisious evidence in mind a security detail was arranged. Crews worked through the day with the RCMP Forensic Ident Team to look for cause and origin. It appeared likely that more than one fire may be the cause due to the amount of damage in the bedrooms. After 12 hours at the incident, the scene was turned over to the insurance adjuster who had the site fenced and secured for additional investigators to complete a more intense investigation. Further evidence of additional fire sets in the home were discovered and the fire has been ruled as arson with many agencies continuing to work on this case. Fire Crews did a remarkable job containing the fire to just the one home. One neighbouring house suffered two cracked windows from the heat, however that was the only damage outside of the original property. The house is a complete loss.