It was in the afternoon, I heard my neighbor crying so I checked out in the hall if she was okay. There was a large puddle of black oil all over the stairway in the appartement building. She saw an old man with a baseball cap drop a red can of oil and running away but unfortunately my neighbor panicked and she took the can in her hands ruining the fingerprints. She doesn't have a clear description of the man. We immediately called the police and a firefighter truck came. They poured peat moss all over the stairway and everything to clean the place. The main entrance door doesn't have a lock. We asked the owner many times to install a lock.

If the pyronamiac had the time to light the oil puddle on fire I don't know if the small BC extinctor would have been sufficient and worked on oil based fire and I never used one. The odor was strong but I guess it's not really a hazard and we open doors for air flow. How can one prepare for such a weird emergency? My Bug-Out bag is not really put together yet...

My neighbors are worried the guy would come back during night and accomplish his weird impulse. I asked them if their smoke alarms are working. Do you know something about pyromaniac psychological profile and if he would come back soon or anything?

Frankie

Arson fires are all over the 5 o'clock news down here in the US: see if the Fire Department wants to get out a story on this pyro (make sure they agree this was attempted arson). I'm no psychologist, but he'd be less likely to come back to the exact scene of the crime if there was publicity out there about this.

If you get the chance, try to light a small puddle oil on fire. It's very difficult, and if it does light it seems to go right out. If it was just oil or fuel oil (diesel) I wouldn't have been as worried. Now if it was gas/naptha/Bacardi 151/ect I'd be much more concerned.

Cops will check the crowd when there's a fire because pyromaniacs are known to enjoy watching their dastardly deeds. They are sometimes observed mixing with the crowd of onlookers while performing auto-sexual acts.

check the landlord's finances....

BTW, at least in MOST states of the USA, attempting arson on an inhabited building is considered a deadly threat, and can be stopped with deadly force

That is right, I did my research... Well maybe he didn't want to put fire on the building. It was very slippery and there was oil everywhere in the starway. Its very strange, I don't know what this guy had in mind.

Frankie

Maybe the guy was just doing an oil change on his old car, and dropped the oil container at some point, and just ran because he was afraid he was going to get billed for the cleanup?

Just a thought...

Pyromaniacs usually just use gasoline (oh wait, with such high gas prices... lol!).

Have a bigger ext. in your apt?
Don't live where others can f-up your life easily (in apts, condos, tall buildings, etc)

-Todd

On a side note, tell your landlord to look at having Simplex or simplex style locks put in the main entrance door. They're push-button combination locks for doors.
Then he just has to give out a code instead of a bunch of keys.

It won't stop people from giving out the code to friends/family (or stop someone who really really wants in), but it will stop someone on the street from just casually walking right in. Which, is basically what you're looking for here. They range in price from $200 to $800 depending on security level and style, but they're worth it when the other option is leaving a door completely open.


You may even be able to take up a collection in your apartment building to have it done, then all you would have to do is get the land lord to approve it.

Arson may not have been the intention if the liquid was lubricating oil.
As others point out, lubricant is hard to ignite, perhaps the intention was simply vandalism/messing up the place.
Or as suggested above it might possibly have been an accident.

Diesel fuel is hard to ignite unless soaked into a porous surface such as carpet, when it ignites easliy.
(a firefighter once told me that proffesional arsonists use diesel or kerosene, never gasoline. Diesel or kerosene burn fiercly and will often destroy the building, and murder any occupants. Gasoline is liable to explode and kill the arsonist)

I would agree that the street door should be locked.

That is impossible, it's a two story building and the oil was wall to wall on every steps and he also carefully put oil on another section of stairway leading to the appartements in the basement. And when my neighbor arrived from the basement (doing laundery) she saw him pouring it then run away quickly.

Actually the police thought it's a mix, like there was another substance mixed in the oil.

Thanks for the suggestion about a Simplex style lock, I'll suggest it to the owner and my neighbors.

Frankie

A small fire extinguisher is only good for about 15 seconds.

A B/C extinguisher is useful for flammable liquids and organic solvents (the B part), and electrical fires (the C part).

I would stay in contact with the police and fire departments and ask if they have made any discoveries in relation to this incident.

Could this have been an irate previous tenant?

If your landlord doesn't want to install a lock on the door, pin him down and insist on knowing WHY he doesn't want one (maybe as a group). I'm not familiar with lawsuit laws in Canada, but if he takes no steps to prevent a repeat episode, he may be setting himself up for a major personal loss.

Are there any other issues going on with this place? If so, could they be connected?

Sue

See if He will put in a loch if the tenants buy it. Get yourself a few extra fire extinguishers, and make sure the smoke alarm is up to snuff. You may want to install a smoke alarm by the apartment door. Plan on egress besides through the apartment door if needed. Up your renters insurance coverage asap.

Be sure you have some safe way out besides your apartment door. Get a rope ladder, for instance.

And look for a new place to live.

There are many freaks as in all big cities. There was a time when a homeless would sleep and [censored] inside the building. I'm not aware of other particular issues...

Frankie