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UPDATED: Firefighters douse three suspicious fires in Delbrook

Three blazes broke out Friday evening in Delbrook, including one fire that came within inches of a home on West Windsor Road. Firefighters arrived on the scene to find fire tearing through a three-metre tall hedge.
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Three blazes broke out Friday evening in Delbrook, including one fire that came within inches of a home on West Windsor Road.

Firefighters arrived on the scene to find fire tearing through a three-metre tall hedge. Crews knocked down the flames before sparks jumped to the main structure, according to District of North Vancouver assistant fire chief Brian Hutchinson. The fire melted insulation around cables running into the house but the home itself was unscathed, Hutchinson said.

Shortly after the first fire, a hemlock tree ignited on the corner of West Windsor and Stanley Avenue. Firefighters scrambled back to the neighbourhood shortly after 5 p.m. and confined the blaze to foliage. A grass fire was also reported at the entrance to Delbrook Park later that evening, but RCMP officers managed to stamp out the sparks without a third effort from fire crews.

The proximity of the fires indicate arson, according to North Vancouver RCMP spokesman Cpl. Richard De Jong. There are witness accounts of a suspicious youth in the area, according to De Jong, who said police are continuing to investigate. No accelerants were detected.

Hutchinson credited residents for the quick action. “We always look for people to call 911 as soon as they see or smell smoke, that’s what got our crews there quickly.”

One homeowner’s hedge was decimated, according to neighbour Jeff Kennedy. “That entire hedge was burned down. It was pretty exciting in a negative way.” Kennedy said he and several neighbours are also harbouring suspicions of arson. “There’s zero question that it was deliberate.”

Anyone with relevant information is asked to call police at 604-985-1311.