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Fire destroys buildings in Providence Residents reminded not to leave fires unattended
Roxanna Thompson
Northern News Services
Published Monday, June 24, 2013
DEH GAH GOT'IE KOE/FORT PROVIDENCE
A fire that destroyed four structures in Fort Providence has been ruled accidental.
Ten members of the Fort Providence Volunteer Fire Department and a number of support staff responded to a fire at Margaret Elleze's residence on B Street in the hamlet at just after 6 p.m. on June 16.
When the department arrived, a wooden cook shack located behind the house was fully engulfed in flames and the fire had spread to two nearby sheds and an outhouse, said Kirk Hughes, a fire officer with the department.
The cook shack was less than 3.6 metres from the house and there was a fuel tank between the two. After the initial attack on the fire, the next priority was to use water to protect and cool down the house and the tank, Hughes said. The department also created a barrier using water so the fire couldn't spread into the brush near the house.
The fire destroyed the cook shack, the outhouse and the sheds. The sheds contained three snowmobiles along with other items. The second shed to catch on fire also contained gasoline and ammunition.
The gas fed the fire and some of the ammunition went off, said Hughes. The department attacked the second shed strongly with water to stop more of the ammunition from firing. Ammunition set off by a fire is not as dangerous as ammunition fired from a rifle because the explosion is not confined and directed, Hughes said.
"It's still dangerous, it's unnerving for sure," he said.
The department spent approximately two hours at the residence putting out the fire, cleaning up and conducting an investigation with the RCMP. The fire has been ruled not suspicious, said Hughes.
A wood stove that was used to cook ribs and then left unattended was identified as the likely cause of the fire.
This is the second fire the department has dealt with in less than a month. The first in an outdoor shed at a difference residence on June 1 was also ruled accidental.
The fire department is reminding Fort Providence residents to not leave fires unattended. People cooking in gazebos or cook shacks should also be mindful of the amount of wood they are using and keep other burnable materials, such as wood piles, away from the buildings, said Hughes.
Because it is forest fire season, residents should also make sure all fires, whether in the hamlet or in the bush, are fully extinguished before they are left unattended, said Hughes.
The department is also asking that residents keep the roads to and from an emergency scene clear of vehicles and bystanders so members of the department can arrive quickly.
Hughes said the department did a good job responding to and extinguishing the fire. Except for the fuel tank and ammunition, this was a typical fire attack.
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