Soon after showing up for work Monday morning, some construction workers in Elora called 911.
They discovered that fires had been set the previous night inside two abandoned homes near their work site on Ross Street.
“It appears that the fire started last night around 8:30 or 9,” Wellington County OPP Const. Cheri Rockefeller said in an interview.
One of the fires was contained to the basement, while the other one caused some damage to the main floor of the building it was set in.
The fires are being investigated as arsons. Police want to hear from anyone with any information about them.
It is not yet clear if the fires may be connected to the more than 10 that have occurred in other parts of Wellington County -- mainly around Guelph/Eramosa -- over the last few months.
Both homes sit on the property under construction as part of the Elora Mill redevelopment.
Brian Johnston lives on that property. He woke up to the sight of police vehicles and fire trucks on Monday, and says he doesn’t think the fires could have been set even a few weeks ago, because until recently the homes were fenced off.
“It was a lot safer here when they had it all fenced up and gated,” he said.
With reporting by Allison Tanner
