PRINCE GEORGE — Three people are dead following a fire this morning at the EconoLodge in downtown Prince George.
The fire broke out just before 9 a.m. at 9th Avenue and Victoria Street.
Plumes of smoke could be seen from several vantage points in Prince George as crews battled the blaze.
“Police were advised by fire personnel, that the fire appeared to be suspicious; however the investigation is just beginning and cause has not yet been determined,” says Prince George RCMP Cpl. Craig Douglass.
“The Prince George RCMP’s Serious Crime Section were called in to lead the investigation. Further details may be released as they become available.”
Douglass said he couldn’t comment yet on the identities of any of the victims.
CKPG Today also asked Douglass where the victims were located inside the building when the fire broke out.
“Fire investigations are notoriously difficult and certainly this just happened. The fire scene is still hot. So, there will be a number of steps we take to gather evidence that we started right off the bat to gather evidence and information as to who was in the building, whether or not there were surveillance images, things like that. Whether or not there were things that could be seen. So, we’re at the beginning of stages.”
Moving forward, he says the RCMP’s Serious Crimes Unit will try to determine if arson may have been involved.
“This has not been determined to be arson yet. That could take some time. It was initially suspicious in nature and that was conveyed to us and we began taking steps to secure evidence.”
