Image Credit: Kent Simmonds / CFJC Today

By Dylana Kneeshaw

ST. ANDREWS FIRE

No official word on cause of Thursday fire that scorched St. Andrews on the Square; bystanders hope for restoration

May 2, 2024 | 11:56 AM

KAMLOOPS — Firefighters in Kamloops were called into action earlier Thursday morning (May 2), responding to a fire at the historic St. Andrews on the Square church.

There’s no official word yet on the extent of damage to the structure, which is the oldest public building remaining in Kamloops, first built in 1887. And residents who gathered around the scene Thursday morning expressed hope it can be restored.

CFJC crews spoke with KFR Deputy Fire Chief Ryan Cail on scene, who explained that the fire spread into the interior of the building.

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“It went up the wall and it got into the attic space so it was a bit challenging,” said Cail. “High ceilings, and we had to get crews in there and create an opening so we could get up with a thermal imager and find where the fire was.”

Daryl Snell was one of several people who witnessed the incident. He says the flames broke out just before 9:00 a.m., with firefighters rushing in shorty after.

“We came down here and there was a fire on the back of a shopping cart right to the side of the church,” said Snell, “and there were flames billowing out of the eaves up at the top — really dark smoke.”

The fire affected a transformer, which knocked out power for sections of downtown Kamloops. FortisBC was also called in to shut off gas to the church.

“Power went out and some of the gas lines were compromised in the back side of the building, so it definitely made a little bit of a challenge for crews,” explains Cail. “We had to have somebody dedicated in the back there while we were trying to get everybody together to do an interior attack.”

KFR says as of late morning, no injuries had been reported. As crews worked on the scene, traffic had to be diverted around the 200-block of Seymour Street.

“We want to make sure the fire is completely out and it’s in a decent condition before we open that back up again,” added Cail, who went on to say that no cause has been officially determined yet, and the fire investigation team will be looking into the incident.

Residents with fond memories of the historic building keep their fingers crossed for potential restoration.

“It’s an iconic church. It’s where everyone goes for festivals, music, getting married,” says Snell, “It would be a disaster for anything to happen to this.”