A suspicious fire outside the Stewart Observatory, headquarters of the Students’ Administrative Council (SAC), caused an estimated $15,000 of damage to U of T property last Friday.
The fire destroyed a picnic table, damaged a sign, and charred an ornate cast-iron lamppost installed in 1911. The words “Rocco for ever” [sic] were painted in capital letters on the asphalt of Hart House Circle, on the west side of the SAC building.
Campus police say the fire happened on March 14 at about 1:40 a.m.
SAC President Rocco Kusi-Achampong said the damage was discovered by SAC’s business manager, Jack Ward. “Monday morning we discovered it, and on Friday night at 9 [p.m.] it wasn’t there.”
Kusi-Achampong said he gave a statement to campus police: “I know it was an act of arson, a criminal act, a deplorable act, and we need to find the people that did it.” He added the picnic table will be replaced and the lamppost will be repainted. “The picnic table cost $15,000. The costs are severe.”
He said he will miss the picnic table, which was installed just as he assumed office. “It’s significant. In the summer, we have meetings. There are summer students there.”
Mike Caskenette, a U of T police officer, said he had no additional information about the fire, but said, “It’s a pretty serious incident and it’s being investigated.”
