A man’s house could have been completely razed by the flames of a suspicious fire in Saint-Georges, if two good Samaritans who were passing by had not alerted the firefighters before waking him up.
• Read also: [PHOTOS] Series of fires in Donnacona: an alleged arsonist arrested by the SQ
“If it hadn’t been for them, my house and that of my neighbor would probably have been there… and I might no longer be here!” says Yvon Thibodeau, still shaken by the events a few hours later the fire.
Around 3:30 a.m., Thursday morning, his neighbor’s shed, located between his house and his on the 22e Rue, caught fire for a still undetermined reason.
Yvon Thibodeau was awakened by two young men who contacted the firefighters.
Photo Agence QMI, Guy Martel
According to Mr. Thibodeau, they were two young men who had just finished their shift as an establishment supervisor at the Saint-Georges hospital when they saw the smoke from the end of the street.
They then rushed to call the fire brigade and wake up nearby residents.
“It was minus one, it had already started to melt my neighbor’s shingle and part of my tree was on fire,” emphasizes Mr. Thibodeau.
The shingle of Mr. Thibodeau’s neighbor’s house had begun to melt in the heat of the fire.
Photo Agence QMI, Guy Martel
A drug case?
Some people met by The newspaper believe that the event could have been linked to the criminal past of Mr. Thibodeau’s neighbor.
As his report confirms, this neighbor has had run-ins with the law in recent years, notably for possession and trafficking of substances.
The firefighters arrived at Mr. Thibodeau’s house barely five minutes after he woke up.
Photo provided by Yvon Thibodeau
“I’ve never had a problem with him, but it’s true that it has stirred up a few times in the past. There were several police raids,” confirms his neighbor.
For the moment, the Sûreté du Québec (SQ) is content to indicate that this is an event considered suspicious.
It was the shed located between the two buildings that caught fire.
Photo provided by Yvon Thibodeau
“It is too early in the investigation to comment on the circumstances of the fire,” says Frédéric Deshaies, spokesperson for the police force.
Not necessarily related
Barely 45 minutes after the first blaze, a similar fire occurred on the 127e Street. Flames engulfed a small garage, spreading to an adjacent vehicle and the neighbor’s garage.
Local residents were also preemptively evacuated and the blaze was quickly brought under control, fortunately causing no injuries.
The fire on 127th Street caused damage to a garage and a car.
Photo Agence QMI, Guy Martel
The two events of suspicious origin which occurred less than two kilometers apart in a short period of time are reminiscent of the wave of arson attacks that occurred the day before in Donnacona.
Nevertheless, for the moment, the authorities consider the fire of the 22e Street and that of 127e Rue as being two separate files which would not necessarily be linked.