A fire broke out shortly after 10 a.m. Saturday at the Cona Hostel in Courtenay. Bystanders could be overheard saying flames were billowing out of second-floor windows.
Firefighters contained the blaze from each side of the building, which sits next to the Courtenay River by the 5th Street Bridge. Breathe Health Collective operates out of the ground floor on the Anderton Avenue side of the wood-frame building.
Courtenay Fire Chief Don Bardonnex said nobody was injured.
“All the occupants are out,” Bardonnex said at the scene. “ESS (Emergency Support Services) is taking care of the occupants.”
He said the fire started on the second floor ‘alpha side,’ which is the street side of the building.
“We had flames coming out of the alpha and the delta side on arrival. Crews knocked it down. It’s an old building so it takes a bit to get it out, but the knockdown was easy.
“We had 27 firefighters on scene,” Bardonnex added. “We also have Cumberland Fire, and our Station 1 doing a standby because we had multiple incidents happening at this time.”
It’s up to the insurance company to determine if the building is a writeoff. The cause of the fire is unknown.
Police respond to several fires downtown
While police were still at the hostel, they received another call of a fire near Fifth Street and Fitzgerald Avenue. Then, a third call came in about a fire that broke out in the 600-block of Cliffe Avenue.
Frontline members of the Comox Valley RCMP arrested one man who is believed to be associated with one or more of the fires. He remains in custody while investigators from the Comox Valley RCMP Major Crime Unit continue to gather evidence.
“There were likely a lot of witnesses in the area as these fires were occurring,” said Const. Monika Terragni, media relations officer. “If you witnessed any suspicious behaviour, we are asking you to call and speak with our investigators.”
Anyone with information can call the Comox Valley RCMP at 250-338-1321 and refer to file 2019-4051. If you wish to remain anonymous, you can call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS) or online at http://comoxvalleycrimestoppers.bc.ca/
