Fire destroyed a large outbuilding at a home on Highway 97 near Ogden Road in Lac la Hache early on June 17.
Lac la Hache Volunteer Fire Department chief Terry Murphy says the call came in at 3:30 a.m., and crews found the auxiliary building was fully engulfed upon their arrival.
A large group of firefighters responding from two departments fought to ensure the fire, which was blazing in an old barn that also formerly housed a chicken coop and greenhouse, did not spread to the house or other structures, he notes.
Murphy notes a total of 13 Lac la Hache members with four trucks responded to battle the blaze, along with mutual aid provided by four members and two water tenders from the 108 Mile Ranch Volunteer Fire Department.
“We just protected the exposures, and what we call ‘darkened it down’ [to eliminate the biggest flames] and sprayed it until it was out.
“There was no loss of chickens and no loss of livestock, or anything like that.”
While it is not known what started the fire, the property owner told him the barn structure was empty at the time and had a light left turned on with an electrical cord running out to it, he explains.
Murphy says the fire is not considered suspicious and the cause is not under further investigation.
“Nobody was hurt, it went fine and we cleared the scene at 6 a.m. and were back at the hall by 6:30 a.m.”
Noting all members wore breathing apparatus because the scene was quite smoky, the fire chief adds he had BC Ambulance Service on scene for rehabilitation purposes, in case any of the crew had needed treatment for inhalation or injury.
