Two charged with arson in North Battleford apartment fire

Two people have been charged with arson after an RCMP investigation into a suspicious fire at an apartment block in North Battleford.

The blaze early Monday in the 1400 block of 102nd Street sent 17 residents and six first responders to hospital. All of them have since been released.

A 22-year-old woman from North Battleford was charged with one count of arson and one count of arson with disregard for human life. She’s to appear in North Battleford Provincial Court on Friday.

A 42-year-old woman from North Battleford is facing one count of arson with disregard for human life and one count of breach of an undertaking. She was to appear in court Thursday.

“I would like to thank our investigators, as well as the North Battleford Fire Service and the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency, for quickly and thoroughly working through this investigation, enabling us to lay charges and arrest these individuals,” Staff Sgt. Jason Teniuk, the acting commander of the North Battleford RCMP, said in a media release.

“I also want to thank all the emergency personnel who worked bravely, calmly and diligently at a dangerous scene to ensure all residents of this apartment complex were able to escape.”

The Red Cross is providing support to the people who were displaced by the fire.