HALIFAX – A blaze that ravaged a Halifax-area fire station was triggered by an electrical issue, according to the spokesperson for Halifax Regional Fire and Emergency.
Phil McNulty said the electrical issue started between the first and second floors of the building on Old Sambro Road in Harrietsfield.
He adds that the fire is not considered suspicious.
The blaze, which erupted Thursday morning, started in the back of the building and there is fire damage in the training room, furnace room and kitchen of the building.
McNulty said there is smoke and water damage in other parts of the building, including the bay area where the equipment was held, which faces smoke damage.
There were three units inside the station when the fire broke – an engine, a tanker and a service truck. Volunteer firefighters moved the units outside and one was even used to help fight the flames.
McNulty said the three pieces of equipment have been re-allocated to the Herring Cove Road, Herring Cove and Sambro fire stations. Those stations will now be responsible if a fire breaks out in the Harrietsfield area.
“That’s going to be a dynamic piece – the storage of equipment. It may be moved around as required,” he said.
He said the volunteer firefighters at Station 62 will still be called if a fire breaks in the Harrietsfield area but he acknowledges there will be a slight delay since they will have to travel farther to get their fire trucks and equipment.
“The fire service is very comfortable with the fire response to the residents of the area today as it was yesterday,” he said.
However, Jim Gates, the president of the firefighters union Local 268, said the delay in fire response is unacceptable.
“Every minute of a fire counts. Before we can get water on the fire, the volunteers from Harrietsfield are having to respond to another district to pick up the fire truck,” he said.
Gates does acknowledge that the fire department had few options on how to move forward.
“There’s not a lot more they could do this instance, aside from getting things in order right now and getting another station, getting that station repaired and get it back up and running.”
The station was manned by career firefighters until the end of July. Then it became a completely volunteer-based station.
Gates said this move could have been a factor in how big and destructive the fire got.
“This particular fire that happened on New Year’s Day might not have gotten as advanced as it did as there would have been a crew in place in the station,” he said.
District 11 Councillor Stephen Adams said the temporary loss of the fire station is discouraging and disappointing for the Harrietsfield community.
Global News spoke with some residents, who did not want to be identified, who are concerned about the loss of the fire station and its firefighting capabilities.
“It could raise some level of concern for residents but I can assure them that the fire service, myself included, will do everything necessary and work with the volunteers … to ensure the community has a level of service that is what they’ve been accustomed to,” Adams said.
Adams said he is working on a plan to move the fire equipment back into the Harrietsfield area. He adds the future of the station is up in the air until an assessment can be done on its structural integrity.
McNulty, meanwhile, said he believes the building is salvageable. While he hopes the volunteers and fire trucks can soon return to the station, he admits there is no timeline on the situation.
He adds that there will be upgrades and changes made to the building’s electrical system as a result of the fire.
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