Centre Wellington firefighters and the Wellington County OPP responded to two suspicious fires in Elora on Feb. 6.
OPP media relations officer Constable Cheri Rockefeller stated the fires started overnight in two vacant houses on Ross Street, near Wellington Road 7.
“Right now the cause is unknown, but we do not believe there is any running electricity to either building, so it is deemed to be suspicious,” said Rockefeller.
She said the Centre Wellington Fire Department notified the OPP at about 8:52am on Feb. 6 after receiving a report of smoke coming from one of the houses.
Centre Wellington Fire Chief Brad Patton stated the Fergus and Elora fire stations responded to the fires at about 8:45am. With 22 firefighters responding “the two small fires were quickly extinguished,” he explained.
The two houses involved are among several vacant buildings in the area slated for demolition as part of Pearle Hospitality’s Elora Mill project.
“It is a construction site right now so there were workers on site who saw/smelled smoke and notified the fire department,” said Rockefeller.
She added firefighters believe the fire began on Feb. 5 around 8:30 to 9pm and slowly smouldered overnight.
Both fires started in the basement of the homes. In one, the basement floor, ceiling and main floor were damaged. In the second house, the fire was contained to the basement.
Rockefeller noted the investigation is in the preliminary stages and, as of Feb. 6, there were no known links between the Elora fires and several recent suspicious blazes in the Guelph-Eramosa and Puslinch areas.
The Elora fires occurred in an urban area, while most of the other abandoned/vacant building fires took place in rural areas.
“Those investigations are still ongoing,” Rockefeller stated.
She said the Ontario Fire Marshal’s Office was notified of the Elora fires and will be attending, as will the OPP Crime Unit and OPP forensic identifications unit.
There was no estimated value for the loss.
Elora Mill project manager Brian Blackmere stated, “Our site super(intendent) for the Elora Mill restoration noticed the smoke and called the fire department to attend.”
He clarified, “The houses in question are owned by Pearle Hospitality but are certainly not abandoned. They are vacant but have been boarded up to discourage the ongoing vandalism and theft we have been experiencing on the site.
“We hope to be able to demolish these units in the near future given these recent events, so as to avoid the severe consequences of a major fire.”
Blackmere concluded, “We will work with township officials as needed.”
