Volunteer firefighters brace for Halloween nuisance fires

A raging tire fire near the town of O'Leary, P.E.I., last Thursday night sent flames high into the air and tied up a crew of 15 volunteer firefighters for the better part of three hours. As Halloween approaches, volunteer fire departments across the province are preparing for more trouble like this.

"It's very possibly the start of the Halloween trend," said O'Leary fire Chief Ron Phillips, following last Thursday's blaze. "We do staff the hall all Halloween evening … we have extra men on standby just in case."

The fire, on the property of Matthews Lime Spreading on Route 142 in Knutsford, west of O'Leary, has been deemed suspicious by the provincial fire marshal. It involved about 200 tires and several scrap vehicles, and sent flames 14 metres into the air.

"It was fairly substantial," said Phillips.

A fire early Sunday in Crapaud that destroyed an abandoned farm house has also been deemed suspicious. P.E.I. RCMP told CBC News that waste motor oil was found on the scene at 371 Nelson Street, and that it may have been used by an arsonist to accelerate the fire.

Fire crews say arson is far from harmless, and put firefighters and the public at needless risk. It's a problem that crops up all over the province.

"Anytime that volunteer firefighters are responding to these incidents, it still can be a dangerous situation," said East River fire Chief Stephen Pigott.

"It also ties up those members from being able to respond to a real emergency when someone's in need. So that's a big issue."

People often pick easy targets like vacant homes, bales of hay or straw, grassy open areas or bushy fields, but they also come dangerously close to businesses and homes. A deliberate fire outside a vegetable warehouse in O'Leary a few years ago caused hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage, according to Phillips.

In O'Leary, and some other areas of Prince County, fire chiefs say the number of Halloween fires appears to have died down somewhat in recent years. Nobody seems to know why, but they're happy to see it.

However, nuisance fires are now cropping up year-round in O'Leary, according to Phillips — including one this past summer that destroyed a vacant building. It takes a toll on people and equipment.

"You get drug out of bed at two o'clock in the morning to this kind of thing, then you basically turn around and go to work. It makes for a very long day," said Phillips.

Fire chiefs say residents can help by watching for suspicious activity and reporting it to police.

The fires in Crapaud and Knutsford remain under investigation.