A residential house fire in Richmond Hill that left five people, including one child, in critical condition on Labour Day is being investigated as a possible arson, a police source confirmed with CityNews.
Investigators say the fire was reported near Skywood Drive and Rolling Hill Road at approximately 3:15 a.m. on Monday.
Jim Kettles with the Office of the Fire Marshall told reporters at the scene that multiple people were trapped inside the home at the time of the blaze, and at least one of them was rescued from a second-floor bedroom.
Paramedics assessed four adults and one youth at the scene and brought them each to various hospitals in the area for treatment. All five individuals are deemed to be in critical condition as of Monday afternoon.
Police later confirmed that one of the individuals is a child under 12 years of age. The other four taken to the hospital range in age from 20 to 70 years old.
York Regional Police (YRP) has confirmed that officers located a jerry can at a nearby school.
“At this time it is being seized as a precaution. While it’s too early to confirm that it is related, its proximity to the fire is suspicious, and it will be investigated in full,” said a YRP spokesperson to CityNews.
Roads in the area are closed while crews investigate.
With files from CityNews’ Shauna Hunt.