Fire fight in The Pas: No serial arsonist here, mayor says

The mayor of The Pas is trying to dispel rumours of a serial arsonist in his town after a weekend fire above a former restaurant in the community.

• Fire that destroyed hotel in The Pas suspicious
• 5 families displaced after fire rips through housing complex 

The fire happened Sunday morning in an empty apartment, and a short time later police arrested an 18-year-old man from Pukatawagan, Man. He's been charged with a count each of arson – damage to property, arson – disregard for human life and mischief over $5,000.

Still, Mayor Jim Scott says talk about a firebug in The Pas is swirling, and he believes the rumour is unfounded despite a number of fires in his community this year.

"It stirs the pot,"Scott said, referring to erroneous information he said is circulating in the community over Facebook. "It's not a serial [arsonist]. There's not one individual who is bent on lighting fires in our community."

Scott said there have been about three dozen fires in his town so far this year, a number in line with years past.

However, he said, there has been significant damage caused by fires this year to a three-storey apartment building, a six-unit Manitoba Housing site and a three-storey hotel.

Deborah Forster, a resident who lives across from the site of Sunday's fire, said she is concerned about a fire bug in her community: "There seems to be fires and vandalism constantly in this town, so like everyone's getting worried."

Watch for suspicious activity

• 2 people found dead in house fire south of The Pas
• Fire causes $1M in damage at Hudson Bay Rail yard

Instead of circulating posts on Facebook, Scott says, residents should watch out for one another and look out for suspicious activity.

"If your neighbour's kid is outside at 4 a.m. on a regular basis you might want to say, 'Hey neighbour, what up?'

"We will band together. We will see an end to this, and it can't continue."

Calls to The Pas fire department have not been returned. 

The community is located about 520 kilometres northwest of Winnipeg.