The house fire that occurred along Cochrane Lake West, north of Cochrane, has resulted in no damage to the value of the property; according to Rocky View County deputy fire chief Perry Prete.
A neighbour of the 42140 Cochrane Lake Road residence called in the fire, which occurred at about 10 a.m. on Feb. 19.
Prete said the home was empty and uninhabitable. In fact, he said kids had been using the home as a place to hang out.
“It was an abandoned house and the people who own the property had no intention of making it habitable,” commented Prete, who said there were no utilities
“We’re considering it an act of suspected vandalism by a person or persons unknown. There was nothing in the house that could have been ignited. And there was no lightning in the sky that day.”
Cochrane Fire Services were first to the scene, followed quickly from crews and water tankers from Rocky View County and Springbank.
“The crews responded to the scene appropriately,” said Prete. “With the abandoned house, we had no idea what was inside.”
Prete said there was no value to the house prior to the fire, only to the land it sat on. He added that even though damage to the building was extensive, the landowner — a developer from Vancouver — shouldn’t see a diminished property value.
