Fire raced through a home under renovation in British Properties Sunday, drawing 30 or more firefighters from three services and stubbornly resisting efforts to extinguish it for more than two hours.
A worker involved in the refurbishment of the wood-frame house near the corner of Craigmohr Drive and Kildonan Road saw flames erupt on the property at about 9:40 a.m. and called 9-1-1. By the time the first crew arrived at the site, which is right at the upper limit of the community, flames and thick smoke were pouring from the structure.
West Vancouver firefighters called for backup from North Vancouver, and soon crews from across the community were battling the blaze and hosing down neighboring buildings in an effort to prevent its spread. As the fire started to eat at the homes supports, firefighters were forced to retreat, and continue to spray it using water cannons mounted on the trucks.
The fire was under control by about noon, but firefighters stayed on site for 48 hours dealing with hot spots.
The 1960s-era home was gutted, some of the roof was gone, and a portion of the structure appeared to be at risk of collapse, but it was not clear whether it was a teardown, according to firefighters.
Everything in the house pretty much ruined, (but) Ive seen insurance companies do amazing things, said West Vancouver assistant fire chief Martin Ernst.
No one was injured in the incident, he said; the house was unfurnished and unoccupied at the time.
Investigators were still on scene Monday, and by Tuesday had not yet established a cause. Their efforts had been hampered in part by concerns about the integrity of the structure, Ernst noted.
West Vancouver police do not consider the fire suspicious.
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