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Update: Victoria street re-opens as police arrest man for ‘lighting items on fire’

Police negotiating with man lighting things on fire
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Victoria police officers negotiate with a man on a roof on Fort Street on Friday (Aug. 25). (Chris Campbell/News Staff)

A major downtown Victoria street has been re-opened on Friday (Aug. 25) afternoon as officers arrested a suspect who was up on a roof.

Fort Street between Douglas and Blanshard streets was shut down around 1:30 p.m. to all traffic and pedestrians were told in strong terms to vacate the sidewalks.

One officer said that the man on the roof above Crust Bakery was creating a “disturbance.”

Later, VicPD tweeted the man was “lighting items on fire.”

Multiple officers were on the scene, including at least two carry heavy long guns.

“Sir, how can we help you get safely off of the roof,” one officer was heard saying to the man, who was trying to pin a large piece of red cloth to the side of one off the buildings.

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Chris Campbell

About the Author: Chris Campbell

I joined the Victoria News hub as an editor in 2023, bringing with me over 30 years of experience from community newspapers in Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley
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