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No injuries in Cape Roger Curtis trailer fire

No one was injured after a trailer burned at Cape Roger Curtis Thursday evening. Only charred scraps are left of the trailer, which was on a Lighthouse Lane property where a large house is under construction.
Trailer
What remains of a trailer that burned at Cape Roger Curtis Thursday evening.

No one was injured after a trailer burned at Cape Roger Curtis Thursday evening.

Only charred scraps are left of the trailer, which was on a Lighthouse Lane property where a large house is under construction. 

Bowen Island Fire Department deputy fire chief Aaron Hanen said that workers working on the nearby house saw smoke at about 4:15 p.m. and tried to douse the fire with a fire extinguisher and a garden hose before the fire department got there.

Hanen was the first person from the fire department on-scene (and was in charge as fire chief Derek Dickson was away) followed closely by two fire engines.

“It was fully involved when I was here, so there’s nothing that anyone could really do [for the trailer] at that point,” said Hanen.

Hanen said that within five minutes of the engines arriving, they had the fire contained. Though the trees surrounding the trailer have scorch marks, Hanen said it was luckily too wet for the fire to spread quickly.

“In the summertime this would definitely would have gone into the trees and we probably would’ve been looking at calling B.C. Forest Service to bring a water bomber over,” he said.

Another danger with such a fire is propane. A dozen or so feet from the charred trailer sit a couple of propane tanks streaked with soot. Dickson, inspecting the scene Friday morning, said that both tanks had vented properly when they heated up from the fire, so didn’t explode. But many islanders have propane tanks so the danger they could pose is something to be aware of.

Hanen said that it’s too early to say what caused the fire. The department is starting an investigation Saturday.