‘Stubborn’ fire causes extensive damage to Nanaimo medical clinic

A stubborn fire caused significant damage to a medical clinic in central Nanaimo on Saturday.

At 7:30 a.m. Sunday, Nanaimo Fire Rescue crews responded to a structure fire at a medical clinic located at the corner of Victoria Avenue and 104th Street.

Geoff Whiting, deputy chief of operations with Nanaimo Fire Rescue, told CHEK News that there was heavy smoke and flames coming from the building when crews first arrived on the scene.

“The building itself was fully involved,” he said.

As firefighters battled the blaze, Whiting said crews had concerns that the building’s roof might not hold, noting that the fire caused significant damage.

“There were some concerns of the stability of the roof structure,” he said. “The medical building did suffer extensive damage to the roof, as well as fire and water damage.”

Whiting said firefighters did a great job extinguishing the “stubborn” fire and preventing it from spreading to other nearby buildings.

“It was a pretty stubborn fire. The fire was in a lot of hidden places in the roof and attic,” he said. “It took quite a while.”

No one was inside at the time of the blaze and crews were able to remove some computers from the medical office.

The cause of the fire is under investigation but it doesn’t appear to be suspicious, according to Whiting.

“There is nothing to indicate that it is suspicious,” he said. “But, it is still too early to tell.”

At 7:30 a.m. Sunday, Nanaimo Fire Rescue crews responded to a structure fire at a medical clinic located at the corner of Victoria Avenue and 104th Street. (Bob Burgess/Photo submitted to CHEK News)

npescod@cheknews.ca

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