Police arrest suspected arsonist behind New Westminster Pier Park fire

New Westminster police havearrested a man suspected of setting fire to the city's historic pier.

Police arrested the man on Tuesday, days after a fire broke out on the timber wharf section of Westminster Pier Park, the New Westminster Police Department confirmed. The fire is now contained, but continues to smoulder underneath the deck surface.

Police say the manhas been released from custody on several conditions and the public is not at risk.

Charges have yet to be laid as the NWPD's Major Crime Unit continues to gather evidence. Investigators will submit a report to Crown prosecutors for consideration of formal charges.

The historic site succumbed to flames late Sunday night,destroyingone of the oldest parts of the long-standing pier, which had been incorporated into a new park that opened in 2012. The attraction includedan urban beach where people could playvolleyball, loungein hammocks orwalkthe 600 metre-long boardwalk.

The Wow Westminster installation ahuge piece of public art comprising four shipping containers shaped into a "W" was heavily damaged in the fire.

Much of the three-acre area containingflammable creosote-soaked timberscould keep burning for weeks, according to the city's fire chief.