Officials say house fires in Regina’s North Central, Heritage areas were ‘deliberate’

Two recent house fires in Regina’s North Central and Heritage neighbourhoods were “deliberate,” according to Regina Fire and Protective Services.

Regina fire says it responded to four fires between 12:30 a.m. and 5 a.m. on June 29.

The first house fire happened on the 1400 block of 12th Avenue, Regina’s Heritage neighbourhood, shortly before 3 a.m. while the second house fire happened on the 3900 block of Second Avenue in North Central at about 5 a.m. Fire officials believe those were deliberately set.

The two other fires were at garages in North Central, one on the 900 block of Retallack Street that started shortly before 12:30 a.m. and the other on the 1400 block of Robinson Street at about 3:15 a.m.

Neither garage fire is being deemed deliberate at this point in the investigation, Regina fire says.

“We’ve seen a significant increase in intentionally set fire behaviour throughout parts of our city in recent months,” said Chief Layne Jackson, Regina fire.

“Residents are urged to exercise caution by doing everything they can to keep their homes safe from deliberately set fires.”

Regina fire has provided tips to help prevent arson which include:

• roll-out bins should be kept on your property, away from buildings, in a secure location
• keep combustible material, such as lumber, tree cuttings, upholstered furniture and mattresses away from the perimeter of your property and dispose of unwanted materials at the city landfill
• if possible, use energy-efficient LED lighting to illuminate your back properties
• secure your property by locking the back gates if you can

Regina fire continues to work closely with police to identify and charge the person or persons responsible for the recent fires.

Anyone with information or notices suspicious activity near their home is asked to contact local police at 306-777-6500.

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