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Vernon  

Fire cause undetermined

Fire officials are still looking into what caused a massive blaze that destroyed a single-storey building in Vernon Tuesday.

The 48th Avenue structure was gutted and partially collapsed by the fire that destroyed social services offices and the office of surgeon Dr. Mike Motyer who operated North Okanagan Foot and Ankle.

Lawrie Skolrood, Vernon Fire Rescue deputy fire chief, said a cause has not yet been determined and based on the extent of damage to the building, pinpointing the exact cause will be difficult.

Skolrood did confirm a roofing company was working on the building earlier in the day, but could not say if the work being done had anything to do with the fire.

Skolrood has been speaking with witnesses about the blaze and has some idea of what happened.

“It happened very quickly which tells me the ignition was well seated in the building and moved through the attic space,” he said.

When crews initially entered the building they could see no open flame in the office area, but when they pulled some paneling from the ceiling they saw lots of flames that quickly took off through the rest of the structure.

Skolrood said it appears the fire had been burning for some time before anyone knew it was there.

Fire crews ensured there was no one in the building before they evacuated to fight the fire from the outside.

“It obviously ignited on the roof and the ceiling area,” he said. “It was a very well established fire by the time our crews got there.”

On Wednesday, crews were at the scene extinguishing a hot spot and retrieving valuable items for people, but entering parts of the building is a concern.

“There is issue with the integrity of the building,” said Skolrood, adding that will make inspecting the building for a cause that much more difficult.

He also said people should not be concerned if they see a small amount of smoke rising from the ashes, as a filing cabinet is still smoldering, but for safety reasons crews will not be sent in to extinguish it.

“It's not going anywhere,” he said.



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