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http://www.thestar.com/News/Ontario/article/283494
From Toronto Star
Fire rips downtown Barrie
December 07, 2007
Jeffrey Todd
Staff reporter
An explosion and fire ripped through Barrie’s historic downtown area overnight, destroying several buildings and forcing the evacuations of nearby apartments.
The explosion occurred around midnight at the Royal Thai restaurant, near the intersection of Dunlop St. W. and Bayfield St., a Barrie Fire Department spokesperson said.
The force of the blast blew out the restaurant’s windows and sent its front door hurtling across the street.
The flames quickly spread to neighbouring buildings as more than 100 firefighters from Barrie and neighbouring communities scrambled to contain the inferno.
No injuries have been reported, but the fire damaged or destroyed a number of buildings dating back to the late 1880s, including the historic Wellington Hotel.
Lindsay Benner, a 23-year-old student, was sitting on the couch with her boyfriend three doors down when the explosion shook her building.
She said the force of the blast knocked books off the shelves in her apartment.
“We were just sitting on the couch and the whole building shook,” Benner said. “We thought a car had rammed the building, so we ran outside and saw the whole building went up in flames.”
Emergency crews wouldn’t let Benner back into her apartment, and she left her two cats, four birds and a rabbit behind. With the entire building engulfed in smoke and flames, she feared they were all dead.
Benner said the businesses and apartment buildings affected were connected, allowing the flames to leap from building to building.
“We lost everything,” she said. “It’s 2:20 a.m. right now and the original building is still in flames. It’s getting worse.”
Benner and many other evacuees took refuge not far from the explosion at the British Arms Pub.
Pub manager Matt Berry said there were two floors of apartments above the restaurant where the fire began.
“They tried to douse the flames on the roof, but then on the bottom floor it came out the windows and then it spread to other buildings,” he said.
“All I saw after that was smoke.”
The local fire department called in help from several neighbouring communities, including detachments from Spring Water and Essa, and pumped water from Lake Simcoe to help battle the blaze.
There was no immediate word on what caused the explosion.
what it used to look like...
larger...
http://static.panoramio.com/photos/original/3401163.jpg
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what's with the fires? is the first 10 years of every century like this?
From Toronto Star
Fire rips downtown Barrie
December 07, 2007
Jeffrey Todd
Staff reporter
An explosion and fire ripped through Barrie’s historic downtown area overnight, destroying several buildings and forcing the evacuations of nearby apartments.
The explosion occurred around midnight at the Royal Thai restaurant, near the intersection of Dunlop St. W. and Bayfield St., a Barrie Fire Department spokesperson said.
The force of the blast blew out the restaurant’s windows and sent its front door hurtling across the street.
The flames quickly spread to neighbouring buildings as more than 100 firefighters from Barrie and neighbouring communities scrambled to contain the inferno.
No injuries have been reported, but the fire damaged or destroyed a number of buildings dating back to the late 1880s, including the historic Wellington Hotel.
Lindsay Benner, a 23-year-old student, was sitting on the couch with her boyfriend three doors down when the explosion shook her building.
She said the force of the blast knocked books off the shelves in her apartment.
“We were just sitting on the couch and the whole building shook,” Benner said. “We thought a car had rammed the building, so we ran outside and saw the whole building went up in flames.”
Emergency crews wouldn’t let Benner back into her apartment, and she left her two cats, four birds and a rabbit behind. With the entire building engulfed in smoke and flames, she feared they were all dead.
Benner said the businesses and apartment buildings affected were connected, allowing the flames to leap from building to building.
“We lost everything,” she said. “It’s 2:20 a.m. right now and the original building is still in flames. It’s getting worse.”
Benner and many other evacuees took refuge not far from the explosion at the British Arms Pub.
Pub manager Matt Berry said there were two floors of apartments above the restaurant where the fire began.
“They tried to douse the flames on the roof, but then on the bottom floor it came out the windows and then it spread to other buildings,” he said.
“All I saw after that was smoke.”
The local fire department called in help from several neighbouring communities, including detachments from Spring Water and Essa, and pumped water from Lake Simcoe to help battle the blaze.
There was no immediate word on what caused the explosion.
what it used to look like...
larger...
http://static.panoramio.com/photos/original/3401163.jpg
---------------------------------------
what's with the fires? is the first 10 years of every century like this?
