'Not fair you did that to me'

To the Editor:

After reading “From the Cruiser” (Kings County Register, Aug. 28, 2008) I feel it’s important to correct a detail. It concerns the incident where a man set fire to a cardboard box in New Minas.

It was not set on fire outside a business; it was set on fire inside the building at the bottom of the only stairway leading to my apartment. At the time, I told this detail to the Fire Chief as well as the Constable who responded to my 911 call. Luckily I wasn’t asleep and heard noise from in front of the building, causing me to investigate. I shudder to think what might have happened if I hadn’t heard anything.

When I saw the box on fire I threw it out in the parking lot and waited for the RCMP. The fire department was sent and showed up in a reasonable amount of time, but by the time the RCMP arrived the box was completely burnt and the arsonist long gone on his bicycle.

Living alone here I had always felt quite safe. After all, the businesses downstairs are protected by alarms and the Fire Department and RCMP are both up the street. But thanks to a sick individual, my safety and peace of mind are both gone.

I can’t imagine what kind of person would set a fire like this and hang around to be seen and confronted by their victim. Yes, he hung around and I found him leaning against the front of the store downstairs.

By the time the RCMP got here he was long gone and I didn’t expect much to be discovered by driving around New Minas 15 minutes later, but the Constable did what he could to help me and I thank him for that.

To the arsonist; you must have a mother or sister or wife. Would you want them to feel terrorized and unable to sleep because some sick individual set fire to their home for his amusement?

It’s not fair you did that to me; I hope next time your victim doesn’t become a statistic. It may be all fun and games for you, but it’s someone else’s life you’re playing with. I feel sorry for you. Please get some help before it’s too late.

I’m sorry for going on and on, but I felt it was important to get the facts straight. It wasn’t just a cardboard box set on fire in a parking lot; it was a horrific experience that could have had a very different outcome.

I was lucky and hopefully I’ll never need to be that lucky again. A building can be replaced. The next time he does this I pray he stops and thinks for a second, ‘Is there anyone in the building?’ and what could happen. Thank you.

Patricia Sweet

New Minas, N.S.