Thanksgiving weekend ended on a sour note for several Port Coquitlam property owners and local businesses as two dangerous fires burned buildings and forced smoke eaters to work overtime to deal with the blazes.
Around 4:30 a.m. Monday the Port Coquitlam fire department was called to a four-alarm fire in the 2200 block of McAllister Street, where a gas line was feeding the fire that damaged a number of businesses.
It took several hours for the firefighters to put out the inferno, said PoCo fire chief Nick Delmonico, adding the fire started in Martha’s Bakery and Cafe and spread to the other businesses via a cavity under the roof.
“A fire of that magnitude with that many structures is always a concern,” said Delmonico, noting that the challenges included overhead wires and the need to have firefighters on the roof to douse the blaze.
Among the businesses affected were the bakery, a wellness centre and Curves Fitness. Nearby Me-n-Eds’ Pizza Parlor was closed Monday as workers mopped up water and tried to fix computers.
Some of the walls of the businesses had to be torn down to allow fire investigators into the building to find out what caused the blaze.
Hours later on the other side of town, a house at 1653 Lincoln Ave. started burning and by the time firefighters arrived around 2 a.m. the blaze was fully involved, igniting live rounds of ammunition that added to the fire’s danger.
“The ammunition started going off and the fire was extremely dangerous,” said Delmonico.
Coquitlam RCMP were on site Tuesday morning to determine if the firearms were improperly stored when the fire started.
Meanwhile, it could be some time before investigators determine the cause of both blazes. Officials were expected to be on the scene of both fires Tuesday with the goal of having a determination by Wednesday. However, Delmonico said the McAllister buildings may just be too damaged to get an exact cause.
Last year, a large fire on Shaughnessy Street that gutted four businesses was deemed to be caused by a towel warmer in a barbershop that short circuited.
Delmonico said he didn’t think extra inspections for older city buildings would have prevented the fires because the causes, at least for the 2015 fire, were random and wouldn’t have been caught by a fire inspection.
He also said the city already has a rigorous fire inspection program in place.
“We have a very committed program here,” Delmonico said.
Meanwhile, Coquitlam RCMP were still determining whether firearms and ammunition were responsible for making the Lincoln Avenue fire more dangerous.
Const. Jamie Phillipson said police have recovered the firearms and will be determining if they were improperly stored.
“When it comes to the ammunition, we’re not sure where it was when the fire occurred,” Phillipson said.
If it was not properly stored, the firearms could be seized to make sure they have been properly registered. As well, the gun owners could take advantage of a current gun amnesty and turn the firearms over to police.
