THUNDER BAY – A pair of fires that broke out on the city’s south side early Friday morning are being investigated as possible acts of arson, authorities say.
Thunder Bay Fire Rescue crews responded to a residential garage fire on South Archibald Street around 2 a.m. before tackling a second fire at a funeral home on Syndicate Avenue South, about a block away, less than an hour later.
"We had two exterior fires with no obvious origin," said deputy fire chief Eric Nordlund. "At this point, it's a potential arson."
The fire scenes are being held and investigated by Thunder Bay police. A TBFR fire investigator has also been assigned and is in contact with the office of the Ontario Fire Marshal, Nordlund said.
Firefighters responding to the garage fire in the 200s block of Archibald reported flames showing from the rear of the structure on arrival, prompting a second alarm.
An exterior attack kept the fire from entering the rest of the structure. Fire officials say damage to the garage was moderate and there were no injuries.
Around 2:55 a.m., a second structural fire was reported at the Jenkens Funeral Home on Syndicate, with flames visible on the outside of the building and reaching the roof.
The occupants of the building self-evacuated, TBFR reported.
First arriving units used multiple attack lines to bring the fire under control from the exterior. The fire got into the roof area, but fire crews were able to extinguish the fire and prevent severe damage to the building.
The building's exterior suffered a fair bit of damage, however, Nordlund said.
A search of the building was conducted to make sure all occupants were out of the building and there were no injuries.
"We are grateful and relieved all loved ones in our care and employees are safe," said the Jenkens Funeral Home in a brief online message.
The incident also forced the home to cancel a sacred fire planned for Friday evening to honour the 215 children whose remains were discovered last week at the Kamloops Indian Residential School. The home hopes to reschedule it in the near future, it said.
Thunder Bay Fire Rescue would like to remind the public that working smoke detectors do save lives.
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