Fire claims old schoolhouse

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This article was published 26/09/2017 (3089 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

After a weekend where historic brick-veneer buildings and an old school were reduced to rubble in separate fires without explanation, the Wallace District fire department is relishing a break.

Following an exhausting 15-hour shift Saturday to extinguish a suspicious blaze that decimated brick-veneer buildings in Virden’s downtown, local firefighters awoke after 3 a.m. Sunday to respond to a former school on fire, said fire Chief Brad Yochim.

The two-storey, two-classroom brick building, referred to as Ross Consolidated School, is also a complete loss.

The school was located north of Two Creeks and commonly misidentified as Two Creeks School due to its proximity to the small community by the same name.

Yochim didn’t have an explanation on how this blaze started either and said a cause was unlikely to be determined. The Office of the Fire Commissioner did not attend the scene to investigate, the province said Monday.

According to the Manitoba Historical Society, the school welcomed students from 1915 until 1966, when remaining pupils were taken to the Virden Consolidated School District No. 144.

The next year, Wallace municipal council turned the building into a community centre, MHS wrote on the organization’s website. For a few years, the building was the site of public meetings, dances, bazaars, picnics and concerts. The complex was eventually turned over to a private owner.

Meanwhile, an investigation is ongoing into the downtown blaze the fire chief considers suspicious.

“I can’t really say why because it is still under investigation,” he said Sunday.

At approximately 5:45 a.m. Saturday, firefighters were called to the fire, and were initially baffled as to where smoke was coming from. They found the origin after cutting a hole through the basement of the electronics store. Firefighters struggled to extinguish the fire because it wasn’t safe to send someone inside, Yochim said.

The blaze couldn’t be contained. Doors installed in two firewalls defeated the purpose of the fire-resistant barriers.

In total, three storefronts — one occupied, two under renovation — were razed, while a neighbouring building sustained damage as well. A tenant living in a second-floor apartment atop one of the vacant stores lost their residence in the blaze. Firefighters were able to save the resident’s cat.

The Office of the Fire Commissioner estimated the total damage at $2 million.

The movie “A Dog’s Purpose” filmed a scene along Seventh Avenue where the fire occurred. The fire happened between Nelson and Wellington streets.

Wallace District firefighters actually visited the same electronics store Friday evening since an electrical amp, inside the building, was on fire. The amplifier was extinguished outside and the fire did not spread inside, Yochim said.

“We’re a little suspicious as to how it started the second time, because the second fire was in the basement, a totally different spot.”

Yochim is proud of how his firefighters handled themselves over the weekend.

“They busted their butt for 15 hours. I never got one complaint from any of my guys,” he said. “For them to do what they did was incredibly strong of them.”

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