RCMP investigating cases of arson at Weymouth church
When Weymouth resident Hans (Bob) Dirr happened to look out of his window in the early hours of Thursday, Oct. 11, he saw a bright light coming from the direction of St. Joseph’s Catholic Church.
He had been awoken by what he thought was a beeping noise – he said it was around 3:20 a.m. – and he got up to use the bathroom.
That’s when he noticed the light coming from the church, located behind his house.
“The bathroom window is facing the church. I usually always look out that window but this time I saw a bright light through the trees,” he said in an interview later in the day.
At first he didn’t think much about the light because he’s seen the church forget to shut their hall lights off before. But when he went outside to investigate he quickly realized it wasn’t the church’s lights he was seeing. There was a fire.
He called 911 at roughly 3:25 a.m. to report the fire.
The RCMP said later in the day that they now were now investigating two arsons involving this church.
A few days earlier, on Oct. 8, the police said a suspect broke a window and tried to start a fire inside the church. The RCMP say there was damage to a window and some pews. Someone also spraypainted graffiti on the parking lot of the church, the RCMP said.
“It wasn’t racist or anything like that,” said Corporal Jennifer Clarke, spokesperson for the RCMP. The Tri-County Vanguard saw a comment on social media where someone described the graffiti as having been some sort of a message. When asked, Cpl. Clarke said it wasn’t a threat. Pressed further, she said, “It’s really topical so I don’t really want to get into it, suffice it to say it’s graffiti and that’s really all I can say.”
The RCMP would not comment about whether the graffiti might have made reference to the issue of abuse, other than to say when asked this by a reporter, “You’re definitely getting warmer.”
The Digby RCMP and firefighters responded to the Oct. 11 fire at the church location. This time they said the church was “heavily damaged.” The damage was described as extensive smoke, water and structural damage.
“The inside of the church was severely damaged,” said Const. Colin Helm with the Digby RCMP detachment, when asked about the fire on Oct. 11.
The Weymouth Volunteer Fire Department was on scene attempting to get the fire under control when the police arrived. When contacted, Weymouth Fire Chief Roy Mullen said he believed six or seven fire departments responded to the call and he said firefighters were on scene until nearly 9 a.m.
The fire was spreading both outside and inside the building, Mullen said. Because the fire was now under investigation by the RCMP, he said he couldn’t give out many details.
Given that the church was targeted twice in the span of a few days, Cpl. Clarke was asked whether the RCMP believe both incidents were carried out by the same person(s).
“It’s hard to say,” she said. “I don’t think we can make that link just but certainly it’s on our minds, that’s for sure.”
The RCMP are also investigating a fire on Aug. 29 that destroyed two historic buildings in Weymouth. Asked whether it is felt all of these incidents could be connected and if RCMP are investigating this as a possibility – and/or whether people should be concerned that someone is setting fire to buildings in Weymouth – Cpl. Clarke said obviously fires in the area have been a concern.
“There are buildings that have pretty significant historical relevance that have been damaged so it’s a concern for everyone,” she said. “Each matter is being investigated in its own right and if we have reason to believe there is a link between some or all of the arsons then we would certainly follow that up.”
Speaking further about the fire, Weymouth resident Hans (Bob) Dirr said he had never witnessed a fire so close to his home. He said he reacted quickly to what he saw and woke up his neighbours to warn them because he wasn’t sure how long it would take first responders to arrive.
“I just said ‘St. Joseph’s is on fire, be prepared in case we have to evacuate,’” he said. The first fire truck arrived within 15 minutes of Dirr placing the phone call, which he felt was good considering these are volunteer departments.
“I give huge kudos to them because that is a quick response time,” he said.
Ian Hillard lives next to Dirr. He woke up when Dirr knocked on his bedroom window Thursday morning to let him know about the fire.
“I really didn’t know what was going on at first,” Hillard said. “All I heard was a knock on my window and thought, what could that be?”
Hillard watched firetrucks and police cars drive past his house with sirens blaring, responding to the call.
“The street out front looked like a parking lot, they were everywhere,” he said.
He spoke to an RCMP officer The Digby RCMP are asking for public assistance with both of these arson investigations involving the church. Anyone who has information about either, or both incidents, is asked to contact the RCMP at 902-245-2579.
Should you wish to remain anonymous, call Nova Scotia Crime Stoppers toll free at 1-800-222TIPS (8477), submit a secure web tip at www.crimestoppers.ns.ca, or use the P3 Tips App.
outside his home who told him there was a fire and officers were already in Weymouth responding to a report of a breakin at the Weymouth Pharmasave. At this time the Digby RCMP said they have no information indicating if the incidents were related.
When RCMP arrived at the scene of the church fire, some neighbours saw them going door to door alerting people of the fire. Residents were in shock by what was happening.
“I still can’t believe
Hillard.
Weymouth resident Terry MacBurnie was also awoken by a knock at her door in the early hours of Oct. 11. The church is located behind her house.
Asked how close she is to the church she said, “It was close enough that they felt they had to knock on my door at four in the morning and tell us we may have to evacuate if the fire got out of control.”
MacBurnie said it was unsettling to be woken up in the middle of the night and it’s even more unsettling that the church has been targeted not once, but twice. Going home at dark one night afterwards she said she did “pack some pep” in her steps.
She said if this was solely an intentional act, or also brought on due to someone who is experiencing pain, “either way it’s sad.”
And coming on the heels of the major fire at the end of August, which is being investigated as suspicious, she said it’s disappointing too.
“You go through town and some of these buildings are almost historic monuments,” she said. “They had a story to tell.” it,” said