Four unoccupied homes have been badly damaged after an early morning fire in Burnaby.
Fire officials say that the homes were slated for demolition.
Assistant Fire Chief Gavin Summers says it was raised to a third alarm fire because of the large area that firefighters needed to cover.
Summers says they needed 42 firefighters and 11 trucks to knock down the blaze.
The break and enters all occurred in March of 2022, three of the four having taken place on the same day. At approximately 3:29 am on March 21, 2022, a suspect allegedly broke into a store in the 9200 block of Alderbridge Way and stole approximately $ 2500.00 in merchandise.
8 people were arrested inside the residence at the time the search warrant was executed. One person was held in custody for breach of probation and the others were released pending further investigation.
In November, the federal Liberal government announced a new immigration plan that would see Canada welcome 500,000 immigrants per year by 2025. A record-breaking 431,645 people became permanent residents in 2022.
Treasury Board President Mona Fortier announced last month that all departments must bring workers back to the office at least two to three times a week by the end of March. In an interview Thursday, she did not specify what the consequences may be for anyone who refuses to return.
Coquitlam RCMP say all residents were able to get out of the house safely, and there were no physical injuries. The Mounties say it is believed the fire was intentionally set by someone who knew the occupants.
The River Forecast Centre says rivers and streams on Vancouver's North Shore mountains and in areas around Squamish, the Sunshine Coast and much of central, east and southern Vancouver Island could exceed levels seen only every five years.