An early-morning blaze that destroyed two million-dollar houses under construction in Brampton is considered suspicious, a fire official says.
Investigators are trying to figure out the cause of the two-alarm fire, which occurred at two unfinished homes that were not hooked up to utilities, including electricity.
“That’s cause for concern for me,” said Brampton Fire official Gary Jarrett at the scene. “As such, we’re going to treat this as a crime.”
Firefighters were called to the blaze near Viewmount Crescent and Rumsey Court, east of Hurontario Street and Mayfield Road, at about 5:20 a.m.
They went into a defensive attack and brought the fire under control within an hour.
Firefighters were able to prevent the flames from spreading and save neighbouring homes that are occupied.
“(One of the occupied houses) was very close to one of the houses under construction,” Jarrett told CP24 reporter Cam Woolley. “There’s no damage to that home, which is a real testament to the men and women of Brampton Fire.”
Those neighbouring homes were evacuated as a precaution, and the residents were allowed to return about an hour later.
The unfinished houses that were destroyed were almost complete. Construction workers were doing work on their interiors this week.
Police are reviewing surveillance video from security cameras at the work site.
A Peel EMS spokesperson said no injuries were reported.
With files from CP24 reporter Cam Woolley.
@ChrisKitching is on Twitter. For instant breaking news, follow @CP24 on Twitter.
