Man lights van on fire

On Wednesday April 26th at approximately 7:15 pm Sunshine Coast RCMP were called to a report of a man in crisis threatening to blow up a residential building.

The RCMP attended the 5600 block of Hightide and observed the man in the back of his camperized van. The man said he had 6 propane tanks that he was going to set fire to.  RCMP ordered the man to exit the vehicle but he refused and then started a fire inside the van.  The fire quickly grew with intense smoke coming from the vehicle.  RCMP and Hightide Supportive Housing staff began evacuating residents as a precaution. RCMP tried to gain access to the van but the doors were either locked or barricaded from the inside.  The male inside was then seen trying to escape the fire by climbing out a side window.  Police grabbed him and pulled him to safety to obtain treatment from paramedics. Sechelt Fire Department arrived and quickly extinguished the fully engulfed vehicle.  A 76 year old Sechelt man was apprehended and taken to hospital with minor injuries.