A couple living in a trailer on the dike near the West Coast Railway Heritage Park say they were burnt out of their only home while they were away for the day trying to find work, and fear that someone had deliberately targetted them as homeless people.
Clare Johnston, 60, and Stephen Bowbridge, 50, had travelled to Lillooet to apply for work on a massive hydro project due to start later this spring. They left at 6:15 a.m. on Monday morning (Feb. 19) by bus for the long ride north to the job fair. By the time they returned that evening, the trailer had been destroyed.
"It was gutted completely, with all our clothes, all our paper work," said Johnston. "We don't understand why people didn't seem to see it and we don't understand why somebody didn't phone the fire department."
Fire Rescue was only on the scene after a call from Bowbridge upon their return at 7:30 p.m. By then it was too late.District of Squamish Fire Rescue Chief, Ray Saurette, said that following an investigation the next day, the cause of the blaze was "inconclusive."
"We're treating it as suspicious and the RCMP are investigating," he said.
Bowman, who hopes to direct traffic at the hydro construction site in Lillooet, said she was distraught at the loss of her property, including a collection of teddy bears, phone charger and other effects, and said that harassment had increased in recent weeks.
"But there are other people who are the nicest, friendliest types you'd ever want to meet," she said. "One elderly couple talk to us every morning when they go for a walk, and I know they would have called it in if it had been on fire when there were there.
"It is so frustrating. We made it through the bad weather and the cold, and we thought we were over the worst."
The pair had been granted three days' emergency shelter, for a hotel room by local community services. But as of Thursday night (Feb. 22) they were without shelter.
Cpl. Dave Ritchie of the RCMP said arson was not suspected at this time, but the file would be kept open. He said there had been "no alarm bells" of homeless people being targetted, despite homeless advocates' claims to the Chief that since August, that squatters' sites throughout the community have been torched.
Johnston and Bowbridge said local businesspeople have been helping by chipping in a few dollars.
"So there are nice people out there," said Bowbridge.
