Windsor Fire urges vigilance after recent blazes at vacant homes

Windsor fire is warning the public to stay alert near vacant homes after an increase in fires. CTV Windsor’s Bob Bellacicco has more.

Monday’s fire on Mercer Street was the third vacant home call for Windsor Fire in the last three weeks.

“Maybe accidentally. Maybe on purpose. That’s what police are kind of looking into right now,” said fire prevention officer John Smith.

Windsor Fire can’t confirm if there were squatters in the home before the fire but suggest there may have been some sort of human intervention.

“There was no electricity, no natural gas supply so we eliminate those as instant sources,” he said.

There was a type of mattress in the house, but no one can confirm if it was being used in the time leading up to the blaze. A restaurant next door incurred minor damage.

A vacant and boarded up house on Aylmer Street, with no gas or electricity service, caught fire in late November.

A Windsor Fire investigator at the time said the home was being used by “unauthorized personnel”. No one was hurt.

“Some board at some area was taken off the windows or the door and gained access,” Smith said.

No origin of fire has been discovered.

The recent fires sparked a memory for Graham Thompson who lost a property with a vacant unit three years ago.

“We used to manage a property where we had repeat squatters,” Thompson said.

“Police weren’t able to address the issue and it ended up in a fire, and we actually had a tenant that passed away in the property.”

The City of Windsor said 152 properties were billed for the vacant home tax this year.

Squatters or not, Windsor Fire is asking residents to be vigilant in neighbourhoods with vacant homes that may be boarded up or not occupied like this South Windsor home that caught fire last week.

“If they see any suspicious activity or somebody going in a boarded-up area or even a door that they know the place is vacant, call police. That would be the best thing to do. Call police or 311,” Smith said.

Realtor Rhys Trenhaile and his partners are developing a building in downtown Windsor costing millions and is happy someone called police.

“We’re going to have 20 people living in that place.” Trenhaile said.

“That’s 20 more places that we desperately need in Windsor for housing and the only reason we’re still going to get that is because somebody called into the cops and whoever that was, thank you, did a huge favour for me... did a huge favour for the community.”