Firebug terrorises town

In Kaitaia they worry that it's only a matter of time before someone gets badly hurt.

The Far North town has been hit by 20 suspicious fires - lit mainly in the central business area and the town's south end - since November.

Police believe most are the work of a serial arsonist, who strikes late at night or in the early hours, and focuses almost entirely on public and commercial buildings.

But at least one fire set in a private residence has some people fearing the results could soon be much worse.

Dave Collard, proprietor of Mussel Rock Casino Bar, which has been hit twice, sums it up: "If they're not caught soon, someone's going to be burned to death."

In the last attack on his bar, the arsonist broke a rear window and set fire to cartons in a bin underneath, causing $10,000 of damage.

At the community centre hall - the main meeting venue for the greater Kaitaia and Doubtless Bay area - manager Alan Currie says it was lucky police smelled smoke on the night of March 28.

Any loss of the hall, just across the road from the Art Centre gutted the previous month, would have been a multimillion-dollar blow to the community.

"There's quite a few people concerned about who's going to be targeted next and how serious he'll get," Mr Currie says.

Kaitaia Business Association chairman Eric Shackleton says most businesses are operating as usual but are ensuring material like packaging and boxes that can be used as fuel are not left outside.

"We're cutting it up and taking it to the recycling centre, clearing it daily or leaving it in store overnight."

 

Last week local radio station KCR FM appealed for donations to fund a reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible for the fires.

Mr Collard says the appeal reached $1000 in less than a day.

"They were outside our bar and after they left, people were still coming in offering money for the reward."

At the police station in Redan Rd, just up from the twice-targeted council building, Detective Sergeant Mark Robertson admits police don't know who they're looking for or even what the arsonist might look like.

"Each case is treated as a separate incident. We can't say all have been lit by the same person, but there's definitely been five or six started in a similar way."

Looking at details of each fire on the whiteboard in the CIB room, he confirms there is no pattern to the fires.

It's obvious that almost all have been noticed or reported late at night or in the small hours, but that doesn't necessarily indicate when a fire was actually lit.

Police are relying on thorough scene examinations with ESR scientists brought in from outside to help after the more serious attacks.

But the biggest chance of a breakthrough is probably a tip from someone local.

"Kaitaia's a small town [population about 5500]," says Mr Robertson. "Someone must have a bit of an idea who might be responsible."

Local volunteer fire brigades have attended most of the suspicious fires. Fire Service volunteer brigade support officer Colin Kitchen says several could have turned out far worse - especially the fires at the council service centre, the Waitomo Papakainga building and especially the community centre hall.

"What's really annoying for the volunteers is having these arson callouts combined with a very dry summer and autumn season. It's having a disruptive effect on them, their families and their employers."

By late this week, the Kaitaia brigade had logged 146 callouts this year, including the suspicious fires.

Meanwhile, workmen were busy at the council offices this week removing trees around the building facing Redan Rd to improve security at the rear of the premises.

Junior pupils at Kaitaia Primary School are having classes in the school hall, other classrooms and the wharenui while they wait for their fire-damaged infant block to be replaced.

UNDER ATTACK

There have been 23 suspicious fires in Kaitaia since March last year. However the first three are not thought to be linked to the present series, which police believe began on November 13.

 

* March 6, 2004 - Toilet paper and paper towels set alight in Melba St public toilets. Sink and drains blocked to cause flooding.

* July 24 - Three children caught after setting fire to a shed behind Archibald Motors in main street.

* August 16 - Girl caught lighting fire at Pompallier School.

* November 13 - Four-wheel-drive set alight in Taaffe St. Police believe this is the first of the present series.

* November 23 - Rubbish skip set alight at Export Meat Warehouse in main street.

* November 26 - Three fires, one beside CYFS building, another by Ashworth's Paper Plus in centre of town, another in a nearby phonebox.

* January 5, 2005 - Fires at two main-street premises, one behind Mussel Rock Casino Bar and one at Pak 'N Save supermarket.

* February 13/14 - Two more fires, including the biggest to date. The Art Centre, in a wooden villa at the south end of town on the corner of Matthews Ave and South Rd, is gutted and valuable artworks lost. On the same night, a wooden fence is burned in a barbecue area at the rear of the Winz building.

* February 18 - Three fires. The Mussel Rock Casino Bar again, a rubbish skip outside CYFS office and a phone booth near Information Centre at south end of town.

* February 24 - Two fires. The Far North District Council service centre building in Redan Rd and a tree in the Okahu Rd reserve.

* March 13 - Minor house fire in Allen Bell Drive when rubbish bags piled outside are set ablaze. Police don't believe this is linked to the other blazes.

* March 27 - Unsuccessful attempt to light fire at Waitomo Papakainga Development Society building in Bank St.

* March 28 - A lucky break for the town's main community hall, the council-owned Far North Community Centre. A fire is set in a rear courtyard and spreads to dry wooden decking. Smoke is smelled and seen by two late-duty police officers, who call the fire brigade.

* April 16 - Firemen race to Kaitaia Primary School in Church Rd, not far from Art Centre and community centre. Part of an infant block of four classrooms is ablaze. Two are significantly damaged, the others have smoke and water damage. The block has to be rebuilt or replaced.

* April 17 - An attempt is made to burn a rented house in Okahu Rd when two fires are lit against its base boards.

* April 24/25 - The district council's service centre building is again the target with a fire lit in the same place and in the same manner as the one two months before. Luckily, the flames melt a plastic water pipe, which bursts, extinguishing theblaze.