A fire in an abandoned house on Bole Avenue just minutes after the start of the New Year is being investigated by Chilliwack fire and police officials.

“The cause of the fire is believed suspicious,” Chilliwack Fire Chief Rick Ryall said.

The fire call came in at 28 minutes after midnight.

About 20 firefighters from two fire halls arrived at the single-storey house in the 46000-block Bole Ave and found heavy smoke coming from the building.

They forced their way into the house and extinguished the fire in the living room.

“The sparsely furnished house situated between two apartment buildings was not inhabited and the fire damage was confined to the interior of the home,” Ryall said.

Investigations by the Chilliwack Fire Department and the RCMP continue.