THUNDER BAY – What is still left of the former Great West Timber property on Water Street was smouldering rubble Thursday afternoon.
The massive fire lit up the night sky of Thunder Bay’s north side Wednesday evening. There was little firefighters could do after the massive blaze broke out in a vacant sawmill on the Buchanan-owned former Great West Timber property on Water Street.
Twenty-seven firefighters, six pumpers and two aerial-ladder trucks attended the fire that night, and as of 11 a.m. Thursday two pumpers still remained as fire suppression efforts continued into the afternoon.
“The fire is still not out at this time,” Thunder Bay Fire Rescue deputy chief Greg Hankkio said during an interview with CKPR Radio before noon. “We still have some smouldering spots
“There is going to come a time when we have to co-ordinate with the investigators to get some heavy equipment in here to move some of the structure around to finally supress some of the hot spots.”
It is too early in the investigation to determine the cause of the fire, or whether foul play is suspected.
