Vernon Fire Rescue Services (VFRS) responded to two separate fires in the same area of town Saturday night, both of which resulted in a significant amount of damage.
Just after midnight on April 30, VFRS was dispatched to multiple reports of trees and a dumpster on fire in the 3500-block of 27th Avenue. Upon arrival, firefighters found a cedar pillar tree hedge and a garbage dumpster on fire, between two buildings. Crews knocked the fire down quickly and no structures were damaged at that time. Vernon North Okanagan RCMP also attended the scene.
Just hours after the first call, at approximately 4:30 a.m., VFRS was dispatched back to the 3500-block of 27th Avenue for reports of brush on fire. Upon arrival, firefighters found a storage shed fully involved and the fire was extending onto the siding of a nearby apartment building.
Firefighters attacked the fire quickly and extinguished it, managing to keep the fire from spreading further into the apartment building.
“Although there was a significant amount of damage done by these two fires to the exterior of the building, the shed, and the surrounding brush, it was the quick and precise action of our crews that prevented even more loss at the apartment building,” said deputy fire chief Russ Friesen. “We’re grateful that no injuries were reported and that the fire was kept from extending into the apartment building. These fires raise important reminders, such as the need to have working smoke alarms on every floor of a building, and also to limit an accumulation of combustible material near buildings.”
Vernon North Okanagan RCMP, BC Ambulance Service, and BC Hydro also attended the scene during the second call. In both incidents, the cause of fire is unknown at this time and is under investigation.
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