Investigators are still trying to determine the cause of a camper fire that killed a woman and two dogs near Ucluelet last month.
Police were called to the fire at a logging road site near Kennedy Lake on July 11 and arrived to find “what appeared to be the frame of a motor home, which had been severely damaged by fire,” according to a July 12 RCMP media release.
The camper’s owner told police that he was outside the vehicle when the fire began. The remains of a 50-year-old female and two dogs were discovered at the scene.
Police initially said that the evidence did not suggest foul play, however RCMP spokesperson Sgt. Janelle Shoihett told the Westerly News on Thursday that the Vancouver Island Integrated Major Crime Unit continues to investigate.
“We have to work from the ground up. We have to allow the evidence to tell us what has occurred and, when there’s a fire, there’s a lot of evidence that would have to be sifted through,” Shoihett said.
“We have to start from the very beginning and allow the investigation to unfold. It takes time to do that, especially when there’s a fire and the evidence is burned in the fire. We have to take our time and make sure that we do a thorough and complete investigation.”
She said the Major Crime Unit is leading the investigation with assistance from the Vancouver Island General Investigation Section and Ucluelet RCMP.