VERNON – A provincial ministry that serves some of the North Okanagan’s most needy is now scrambling to find a new location after a fire destroyed a Vernon office building Tuesday night.
Wind in the area Tuesday evening helped to create the right conditions for a fast-burning fire at the building on 48 Ave. in Vernon.
“When it did break out, the wind was quite significant at the time and in fact it carried the plume right across Vernon. Everybody knew there was a fire going on. When that happens, and the type of material in the roofing, it is going to burn very quickly,” says Lawrie Skolrood, deputy fire chief with Vernon Fire-Rescue Services.
The building, which has been gutted, housed a provincial employment and assistance office that dealt with people receiving income assistance and disability payments.
The provincial ministry responsible is looking for an interim Vernon location that they hope to have open sometime Thursday. They say they don’t expect any gaps in service despite the destructive blaze. The ministry says client information is stored electronically so no records were lost.
The building also housed a podiatrist office and surgery centre. Firefighters were able to salvage their patient records. They will also be looking for a new location.
Meanwhile, firefighters continued to monitor the site Wednesday, returning to the building to put out a hot spot.
“We’ve got wind today, maybe not as significant as last night, but that will keep bringing things up from time to time. This is the nature of this kind of size of fire. A lot of debris and the contents of the building itself will cause hidden fire,” says Skolrood.
No one was injured in the fire. The building was locked when firefighters arrived and no one was inside. Fire officials will now work to find out what sparked the flames. There are no signs, at this point, that it is suspicious.
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