Amid arsonist fears, firefighters battle three more rural blazes

Norfolk County firefighters battled three separate fires throughout the wee hours of Wednesday morning, said police, who described a man seen running near one of the blazes.

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The blazes come amid a rash of suspicious fires across the largely rural county, located about an hour’s drive southeast of London, which have led some residents to fear an arsonist is on the loose.

“We understand how frustrating this is and scary this is for the community,” OPP Const. Randi Crawford said in a Wednesday morning video, noting she was recording it at the scene of the second overnight fire, at a working gas station.

“We’re doing everything we can to find these individuals and hold them accountable.”

Ontario Provincial Police said officers and firefighters were called to a blaze at 11:30 p.m. Tuesday. The fire was abandoned at a house on Concession 6 Townsend between Angling Road and Old Highway 24, about 20 kilometers north of Simcoe.

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Police said fire crews were then called to a fire at a gas station on Highway 24 near Forestry Farm Road shortly after midnight.

No injuries were reported, police said, but roads were closed in the area for several hours.

It was about 2:20 am when emergency crews responded to another fire – this one at an abandoned barn on Brantford Road at Teeterville Road, about 20 minutes northwest of Simcoe. Police said Windham Road 6 and Windham Road 7 would be closed for an undetermined amount of time as a result of the blaze.

No injuries were reported, police said, adding they were seeking a man seen running on Hwy. 24. He’s described as a white man, about 30 years old, with a thin build and wearing a hoodie covering his face.

Earlier this month, Ontario Provincial Police said they needed the public’s help solving seven “suspicious” fires that began in mid-November:

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• Nov. 12, 10:38 p.m., Windham East Quarter Line, Simcoe
• Nov. 13, 1:03 am, Windham Road 13, Simcoe
• Nov. 26, 10:19 p.m., Fourteenth Street West, Simcoe
• Nov. 27, 12:03 am, 10th Concession Road, Langton
• Dec. 114:09 a.m., Highway 24 near Concession 11, Townsend
• Dec. 1911:40 p.m., Concession 10 Townsend, Waterford
• Dec. 2712:33 a.m., St. John’s Road West, Simcoe

“Most people I see are just frightened. They just found it really unsettling,” Brad Mottashed of Simcoe, who created the website norfolkarsontracker.com to keep the public informed about the fires, said earlier this month.

Police are encouraging anyone with information about the fires to call Norfolk OPP at 1-888-310-1122 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).

[email protected]

@BrianWatLFPress

The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada

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