Fire destroys building at former CFB Chilliwack

CHILLIWACK — The large fire at an old Canadian Forces Base building in Vedder on Tuesday morning might have been the work of squatters, according to fire officials.

Members of the Chilliwack Fire Department were on the scene about 6 a.m. to battle the blaze at a former residential building at the site of the old military base. The structure was on the east side of the old CFB site, near Vedder Road.

The fire had traffic tied up for several hours while a stretch of Vedder south of Keith Wilson Road was closed. Traffic from the Chilliwack River Valley and Cultus Lake had to be diverted through Yarrow.

Assistant fire chief Ian Josephson said they did not yet know how the fire started but they believe squatters might have been in the building at the time. The buildings had been boarded up but there had been problems with people breaking into the site.

"We had a fire in here six months ago, and it was related to squatters," he said. That fire was in the basement and was relatively small, while Tuesday morning’s fire basically destroyed the structure.

The building was already in the process of demolition. The University of the Fraser Valley says it is taking down about nine old buildings, including the residence, by the end of January. They had already removed the drywall from the building. This actually made it easier for the fire to spread throughout the structure.

There were no injuries reported.

Fire firefighters were still on the scene well into the morning, putting out the last flames and starting to dismantle the structure and remove debris.

mchouinard@chilliwacktimes.com