Roseville Galleria Fire Severely Damages Mall
By Naiwrita Sinha, Gaea News NetworkFriday, October 22, 2010
ROSEVILLE, CALIFORNIA (Gaea Times.com) Roseville Galleria Mall, located in Roseville, California, was heavily damaged on Wednesday, when a retail store inside the mall was set on fire. An armed man, Alexander Piggee had reportedly entered the store at about 10:30 am and claimed that he had a gun, he asked the people to go out and they obeyed out of fear for their safety. The man then set fire to the merchandise in the retail store, which soon spread to other stores and engulfed a huge portion of the mall. Firefighters and Law authorities rushed to the scene and the place was evacuated at around 11:30 am. The fire seemed to be under control early afternoon but huge smoke was seen billowing out of the roof at around 2pm in the afternoon.
Shortly afterwards the south end of the roof collapsed partially but luckily no one was inside. An entire arm of the mall has been severely damaged in the fire. Firefighters refrained from going as they were not given clearance on suspicions of a bomb in a backpack. The backpack was being carried by Alexander Piggee when he had entered the shop. The backpack right now is reportedly buried under all the debris. Roseville Galleria is spread over 1.3 million square foot and generates about $3.2 million in taxes annually.
Roseville Mayor Gina Garbolino said “This is a real blow. This is sad”. Galleria Mall will be closed for as long as the authorities deem fit. Alexander Piggee was arrested from inside the mall and has been taken in custody. He was been booked on charges of arson and is also suspected for the fire at Antelope Wall Mart.
