Tyler Anderso / National Post
A house on Winona Drive in Toronto was hit by a Molotov cocktail late Sunday. No one was injured.
December 27, 2010 – 10:00 pm
A home targeted twice by criminals this month was gutted in an overnight firebombing that forced neighbouring residents from their homes and sent flames licking into the night sky for more than five hours.
The blaze, a suspected arson attack, began late Sunday and burned into the early hours of Monday morning.
Captain David Eckerman of the Toronto Fire Service says a Molotov cocktail was tossed into the backyard of the midtown Toronto home, sparking a fire in the basement.
When a resident phoned police shortly before 10 p.m., “smoke in the house was affecting the caller to the point where they were coughing while making their 911 call,” Capt. Eckerman said.
Other than minor smoke inhalation, no injuries were reported in the five-alarm blaze, which was fuelled further by a backyard propane tank and a ruptured oil tank in the basement.
Neighbours contacted on Monday said they did not know the residents of the targeted home at 489 Winona Dr., but the family included two young children.
The home, recently listed for more than $700,000, dwarfed many of the other houses in the modest Oakwood-Vaughan neighbourhood, with a sizeable addition built on the back and two luxury vehicles parked outside.
Police had made no arrests in the incident as of last night.
Sergeant Doug Minor of the Toronto Police Service said it was the third emergency call to the home this month.
“The address has had two previous incidents in the past month,” Sgt. Minor confirmed. “Police are investigating a shooting as well as an occurrence involving a Molotov cocktail.”
The shooting, in which a person driving past fired bullets at the home’s exterior, did not injure anyone, police said, nor did the first Molotov cocktail thrown on the property.
One person was arrested previously in connection with threatening an occupant of 489 Winona Dr., Sgt. Minor said, but he would not provide further details on the circumstances of that arrest, citing an ongoing investigation.
The overnight fire caused “severe damage” to the structure, police said, though an official estimate was not immediately available. There was also significant water damage to neighbouring homes.
Firefighters had to call Toronto Water to request more pressure from the hydrants as the blaze surged on, Capt. Eckerman noted. At the fire’s peak, more than 100 firefighters were deployed to battle it.
One neighbouring home also caught fire, and police evacuated homes on either side, providing temporary shelter for occupants in a TTC bus.
The Ontario Fire Marshal’s office is investigating the blaze, and police were urging residents with any information on the incident to contact authorities.
Posted in: Crime, Posted Toronto
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