A two-alarm fire that destroyed seven transport trucks and thousands of dollars worth of produce at a Burnaby business has been deemed suspicious by police and fire officials.
Fire crews were called to Pemberton Transport Co. at 7850 Venture St. just before 9 p.m. Monday to find a number of trucks, including five five-ton vehicles and two semi-trailers, on fire.
It took 34 firefighters to get a handle of the blaze that proved tricky for the fire department.
Burnaby assistant fire chief Bryan Kirk explained the fire melted hydro lines, while diesel fuel from one truck helped spread the flames to other vehicles.
“At least five trucks were burning pretty good, heavy black smoke, power lines down, freezing cold, it was definitely a challenge that’s for sure,” he told the NOW, noting crews were able to contain the diesel before it caused any environmental damage to the area.
No one was hurt, but the blaze is estimated to have caused hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage to the trucks and contents, including bananas and produce. Smoke also made its way into the main building.
The RCMP and fire department have deemed the fire to be suspicious and both agencies will be investigating.
Though Kirk said officials are pretty sure the fire started around one of the vehicles, he added in a lot of cases the cause can’t be 100 per cent confirmed.
“This is the first one I can say in my 34 years that I can recall,” he said, noting the number of trucks burning at one time. “This is quite unusual.”
Kirk also noted there haven’t been any other incidents in the area recently.
Monday’s incident was the first major fire for the department in 2017.
