HE WORE wil See PP ig as ‘3 2S per May 19. 1993 A guide to sare of the North Shore's many walking trails WEDNESDAY ‘HAPPY TRAILS | global Maver. Classifieds 986-6222 A selection of recipes for tasty treats with a Distribution 986-1337 NEWS photo Mike Wakefield A WEST VANCOUVER Fire Department firefighter hoses down the smoking embers of what is left of the Home Hardware store on Marine Drive in West Vancouver. A rash of suspicious fires has occurred on the North Shore in recent days, including fires at two hardware stores on Tuesday. Hardware stores in N orth and West Vancouver hit by fire “very well.”" ARSON IS suspected as the cause of two North Shore hardware store fires early Tuesday. A Home Hardware store located at 1750 Marine Dr. in West Vancouver was destroyed. A North Vancouver Home Hardware outlet, Pearson's Hardware Store at 1329 Lonsdale Ave., was also hit but sustained light damage. North Vancouver Department Fire Prevention Of- ficer Capt. Gavin Soanes issued an arson alert Tuesday. The fire department has attended five suspicious fires in just four days. “We récommend that businesses remove any combustible debris near buildings,'’ Soanes said. The North Vancouver City fire Department was called to Pear- son’s Hardware at 2:35 a.m. after a pizza delivery person working at City Fire FR By Michael Becker and Anna Marie D'Angelo Dino's Place Restaurant called in the alert. Firefighters were able to extin- guish the fire quickly. Said Pearson’s Hardware owner Nazir Keshavji, ‘‘We had some empty pallets laying down outside and some flattened cardboard. That was the ignition. The fire went through the wall, We had melted pipes and water damage.” The West Vancouver Fire Department was called to the Marine Drive hardware store fire shortly after J a.m. Said West Vancouver Fire Re RY DOOR ON Department Assistant Chief Ron Olson, ‘‘It appears to have started inside the building.” Concrete walls prevented the fire from spreading to neighboring businesses. “The fire was fuelled by just about everything you can imagine that would be in a hardware store, spray cans, pesticides, plastics. It was very difficult." Approximately 28 firefighters, four pumper trucks, a ladder truck and a rescue truck respond- ed. Meanwhile, as firefighters responded to the two suspected arson fires, thieves struck at the North Vancouver City fire hall and at a West Vancouver fire hall. As North Vancouver City firefighters responded to the Lonsdale fire an attempt was made to steal vehicles parked at ey y os BS the fire hall. When the fire broke out in West Vancouver, firefighters there were warned to watch their fire halls. Said West Vancouver Police Consi. Jamie Gibson, ‘We're looking into it and we're checking for prints, too. It appears two lockers were rifled through in West Vancouver.”’ Added Gibson, “We're looking at the whole thing as a package, the fires and the theft.” Meanwhile, Pearson’s Hardware owner Keshavji said he would not speculate about the cause of the two fires. ‘‘It was a coincidence, but I have no way of saying why. We are lucky we have a roof over our heads now.”” . He said he knows the owners of the West Vancouver store, brothers Azim and Nawaz Virani, eae ey SHORE SINCE “We are in the same business. They’re just devastated. What can you do? Your whole building has gone up in flames,”’ he said. @ On on Monday; May 17, a wooden structure built by wood-working students was destroyed at 5 a.m. in a suspicious fire at Carson Graham secondary school. @ On Sunday, May 16, at ap- proximately 1:30 a.m. a hedge caught fire in another suspicious incident in front of an apartment at 170 East Sth St. © Two suspicious fires occurred on Saturday, May 15, at 3:30 p.m. and 3:55 p.m. at 121 West Ist St. and 137 West 2nd S1. The West Vancouver Police are investigating a May.3 arson attack on a vacant home in the 1500- block of Argyle Avenue. at