No damage to government-owned property in Happy Valley-Goose Bay fire that destroyed buildings on former military base
Happy Valley-Goose Bay declared a state of emergency on April 19, following a structural fire that spread posing the risk of explosion in the town. (RCMP NL) - RCMP NL
The cause of the fire in Happy Valley-Goose Bay that destroyed several buildings last week still remains unknown.
Mayor George Andrews says no damage was done to any government-owned property. Andrews also confirmed there were no injuries or deaths as a result of the fire.
“No, there's nothing. They are still in the investigative process and no insurance is involved, and things like that, apparently. And that wouldn't be something we'd be involved in moreso. The investigation will be from the RCMP perspective and, of course, from the owners' own insurance,” he said.
All the affected buildings were privately owned, Andrews said.
This was confirmed by Brad Butler, fire chief for Happy Valley-Goose Bay, who said the buildings were previously owned by the federal government.
An investigation into a fire that started at an abandoned commercial property in Happy Valley-Goose Bay on Friday evening, April 19, 2024 is continuing. - Contributed/RCMP
“All private. Back in the day, it will be a Canadian air base, when the Americans were here first. When the American Air Force left, the Canadian Air Force moved over onto where the base sits now,” Butler said.
“And the buildings on the Canadian side, or the north side which is as it’s referred to now, were all turned over to private interest. A lot of construction companies, industrial. The one that burned, the hangar that unfortunately we lost was a liquid oxygen plant, those types of things.”
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He says the liquid oxygen plant was the same building with an air traffic control tower. Images of that building, including the tower on fire, have been widely circulated, says Butler.
“That was the hanger. That was a liquid oxygen one. Back in the day when the runway was first here, that was the tower for the area,” he added.
An investigation into a fire that started at an abandoned commercial property in Happy Valley-Goose Bay on Friday evening, April 19, 2024 is continuing. - Contributed/RCMP
He says the total damages are not yet known, but it is significant.
“It was in the multimillions because there was a lot of stuff in there belonging to Muskrat Falls, but I wouldn’t be able to give you an exact figure because I don't even know,” says Butler.
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The fire department handed the investigation over to the RCMP as of Friday, April 26.
“Fire and emergency services did the fire investigation on 21 Halifax, the original fire building. All the information from them was turned over to the RCMP and they have since followed up with all their factors,” Butler says.
Andrews says the RCMP investigation is yet to identify a cause of the fire.
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Sanuda Ranawake is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter covering Indigenous and rural issues.
Sanuda Ranawake, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Telegram
