When Innisfil firefighters responded to a structure fire this morning in Belle Ewart, they arrived to find a two-storey garage/workshop engulfed in flames.
Fire crews concentrated on evacuating neighbouring homes on Ewart Street and preventing the flames from spreading to other structures, including Gordie’s Garage.
The heat from the blaze cracked a window of a home on the same property as the detached garage, and melted the siding of an adjacent home. All that remained of the garage/shop, which had an upper-storey loft, was charred wood and twisted metal.
A limo van, which was in for repairs at Gordie’s and parked near the fence between the two properties, sustained minor damage before it was towed away.
There were no injuries from the fire, officials say.
Both of Innisfil's full-time crews responded to the blaze, along with trucks and tankers from the Alcona and Stroud fire stations.
The blaze is believed to have started around 5:30 a.m.
Damage was so extensive that it was impossible to determine the cause of the fire at this time, however Deputy Fire Chief Tim McCallum and investigators were reviewing surveillance footage for clues.
McCallum indicated that even with the video, the cause of the fire will remain ‘undetermined.’
“Unfortunately, the camera, which was on the neighbouring Gordie’s Garage, caught only a corner of the yard,” he said.
Investigators were able to determine a timeline for the blaze, but not a point of origin.
Approximately 25 firefighters were involved in fighting the fire, from the Lefroy, Alcona and Stroud stations.
“They did an amazing job,” McCallum said, noting that none of the neighbouring homes or businesses were damaged to the point that they be uninhabitable.
Fire Prevention Officer Mike Symes, who was also on scene, noted that garage fires are often difficult to control.
"There are flammables — gasoline, lubricants — then you throw in your lawnmower and ATV which have fuel tanks. The fuel load is just too big," he said.
Add to that the lack of smoke detectors and garage fires may be fully involved before they are even noticed.
Although the cause of the blaze is undetermined at this time, Symes had some general advice for owners of workshops and garages.
“Any heating source, whether it’s electrical or wood, we want to have proper space – three feet or a metre” from surrounding materials, he said.
He also urged owners to store flammable material outside, if at all possible.
