The playground structure at Esther Short Park in downtown Vancouver has closed indefinitely after a fire destroyed it early Monday morning.
The Vancouver Fire Marshal’s Office has ruled the fire was incendiary, or intentionally set. The Vancouver Fire-Arson Team is investigating.
Vancouver firefighters responded around 3:45 a.m. to the park on the corner of Eighth and Esther streets.
Officials deemed the playground unsafe and closed the area around the structure. Vancouver Parks, Recreation & Cultural Services said in a Facebook post that the playground will be removed and that the city was already planning to replace it later this year. The department said it is working on moving up the timeline of the project.
