Cold Lake RCMP officials are seeking persons of interest in an ongoing criminal investigation regarding the fire damage to the Beaver River bridge on the Iron Horse Trail.
Members of the Cold Lake RCMP and fire crews from Bonnyville and Cold Lake responded to reports of a fire at the location of the Beaver River trestle on June 22. The Bonnyville Regional Fire Authority (BRFA) had determined the cause of the fire to be arson and said it resulted after an abandoned vehicle was lit on fire and pushed over the north end of the embankment.
On Thursday, July 12, at a press conference at the RCMP Hall in Cold Lake, Const. Dan Kehler of the general investigations unit at the RCMP in Cold Lake, announced the owner of the vehicle that was set a blaze has been identified as well as those involved.
Kehler said the name of the owner of the vehicle and the persons involved in starting the fire are details that he could not release. He did, however, say he believes there was more than one individual involved but that there were varying levels of involvement. He urged those who had been present to come forward with an explanation.
“Everything I've looked at in the entirety of the investigation leads me to believe that there is more than one person involved in starting that fire,” said Kehler. “I think there could be varying degrees of involvement by the people that were there and I would encourage those people to come forward and tell their story first, before someone else tells their story for them.”
The damage to the bridge has greatly affected the community who see the structure as part of their history and Kehler said the RCMP was able to advance their investigation thanks to help from the community.
“We have had tips come through and they have advanced our investigation,” explained Kehler.
Kehler said there are also people out there who have received information about how the fire started through text and Facebook messages but have not come forward and are asked to contact the RCMP in order to help resolve the investigation.
As the criminal investigation continues, so does the search for a solution on how to repair the damage to bridge.
Marianne Price, administrative co-ordinator for Northeast Muni-corr, a non-profit organization that owns and manages the Iron Horse Trail, said four engineering firms will be submitting proposals on how to deal with the damage and one has already confirmed the cost will be least a million dollars.
“I've got four engineering firms which are submitting proposals to us. I've received one so far (and I'm) expecting another one tomorrow and then the following two next week,” said Price. “The number that has been thrown out to me by one of the engineering firms is that we're looking at roughly a million dollars. That might be a little bit conservative but right around the million dollar mark.”
Price said whether or not the bridge is to be repaired or if a different type of structure may be the solution, is still up in the air and they are waiting to here back from the different engineering firms before making a decision.
As of right now, it is not known where the funding of those repairs will come from. Ray Prevost, a councillor from the Town of Bonnyville, said it is still too early to make those decisions and that a solution to the problem is the main concern right now.
“I would suspect it would be an individual municipality who would have to make a decision (and) say yes we're prepared to (provide) this much or that much,” said Prevost. “I think it's way too early and lets find out what the actual cost is and what…options are available.”
Though that solution is still undergoing the process of examination, Marianne Price is impressed to see the amount of support coming from the community.
“I have had offers of people wanting to put together some fund raising events and so on to raise money to go towards rebuilding the trestle,” explained Price. “Most of them are saying, ‘look it doesn't matter what it is, how big or small, even if its just me bringing out coffee and donuts we want to be involved somehow or other in rebuilding the structure.'”
