Investigators at the scene Monday, sifting through the debris. (Nigel Maxwell/ paNOW Staff)

By Nigel Maxwell

Crime

Residents and city officials weigh in on weekend house fire

Mar 23, 2021 | 5:37 PM

A pile of ash and wood is all that remains of a house in Prince Albert’s midtown neighbourhood, following a fire there early Saturday afternoon.

As of Tuesday, the cause had not been released, however paNOW was informed by a member of the city’s fire department the physical work at the scene by investigators had concluded, and the property had been turned over to the landlord and their insurance company.

The Prince Albert Police Service did confirm Sunday, a deceased person was found inside the home, and they were treating the death as suspicious. Tuesday evening, police confirmed they were treating the death as a homicide, and identified the deceased as Jeremy Starblanket from Ahtahkakoop Cree Nation.

In the days that have followed, a number of midtown residents have commented on social media, referring to the house as a “meth house” and claimed numerous complaints have been made about it. When paNOW contacted the landlord, they denied receiving any such complaints, and explained they were still unaware what caused the explosion and fire.

Dave Mulhall, president of the Prince Albert Midtown Neighbourhood Watch group, told paNOW he aspires for community members to work together to prevent similar events in the future.

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“Of course it’s always concerning when these things happen in your neighbourhood … next to where our kids go to school. [We are] thinking about the families involved as this is a very tough time,” he said.

A past record

paNOW has learned police have had at least one previous dealing at the house. In March, 2019, the fire department was dispatched for a report of a garage fire. The single car detached garage on the property was completely destroyed, and the investigation later revealed the fire was deliberately set. Ward 3 Councillor Tony Head said he had no knowledge of any issues with the house.

“I didn’t get an answer at that specific house during my campaigning and since then I’ve heard concerns from other residents of other houses, but this one specifically, no,” he said.

The explosion last Saturday blew the building right off the foundation. (Submitted photo/ Charles Robichaud)

Given the fact the house was less than a block away from a nearby school and an apartment building, Head confirmed the fire incident raises definite safety concerns.

“It’s hard to predict when houses are dangerous or not other than the [neighbourhood] being able to identify some of the people going in or out,” he said.

Going forward, Head encouraged anyone with concerns about a house or property to contact their city councillor, adding complaints can also be submitted online through the city’s website as the city is in charge of bylaw. Head also explained one of the issues currently, is the city is bound by provincial legislation.

“We have to align our bylaws with the cities act and that’s where the changes need to happen with our provincial government, to allow some flexibilty for municipalities to deal with issues that come up like dangerous properties, unsightly properties, derelict properties,” he said.

Meanwhile Brian Howell, manager of the River Bank Development Corporation, described the issues around derelict homes as a difficult situation, with no easy answer.

“The people that rent them are often the people that have trouble finding other places to live whether it’s bad rental history or no rental references, or it could be any number of reasons,” he explained.

Howell admitted to not knowing much about the area of the city where the fire occurred, or the specific house itself, but speaking in general terms, he said it’s too early in the investigation process to simply blame the tenants of the house. Howell encouraged the public to wait for the official results of the investigation, before jumping to conclusions.

“You can easily imagine a situation where a furnace is old, pipes are corroded, connections become loose, you know inspections haven’t been done and gas starts to leak and an explosion results,” he said.

Part of a bigger trend?

According to information presented during last week’s Board of Police Commissioners meeting, the Prince Albert Police Service responded to six suspicious fire incidents in February.

Three of the fires involved a garage or recycle bin; and there was also one residential, one vehicle, and one listed as other (couch in a yard). The residential fire occurred while the home was vacant.

In the case of the garage fire on Feb. 23, the Prince Albert Fire Department responded in the early morning to an address in the 500 block of 10 St. E. The fire was extinguished, but not before causing extensive damage to the structure.

The cause of the garage fire remains under investigation. (Nigel Maxwell/ paNOW Staff)

Residents who live in the area, said the man who was living in the home passed away months ago, and efforts have been ongoing to clean up the house.

According to police, their investigations have resulted in one criminal charge, while two others remain under investigation.

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nigel.maxwell@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @nigelmaxwell