Damage is estimated at nearly $2 million following an early morning fire that destroyed Circle K Convenience store in Colborne.
Cramahe Township Fire Chief Matt Halmasy said fire crews were dispatched to a possible structure fire shortly before 4 a.m. at 48 King Street East in Colborne which is the Circle K Convenience store.
A employee noticed the fire and called 9-1-1.
When fire crews arrived it was confirmed a working structure fire with heavy smoke coming from the building.
“We had a crew attempt entry to the back of the building along with a crew entering from the front.”
Halmasy said, “conditions changed rapidly” with all crews being pulled from the building.
Shortly after crews exited the building the roof collapsed into the main structure.
Firefighters battled the flames from all sides of the building, but the business was a total loss.
Unknown the exact cause, but Halmasy said the fire started in the rear storage area of the building.
“We’ve pretty confident that’s where it got started and then it got up into the roof area and progressed across the roof.”
The Office of the Fire Marshal was called, but didn’t attend.
Halmasy said the fire isn’t suspicious and estimated the damage at $1.6 million.
As firefighters were cleaning up from the fire, the spirit of the community came through with a woman from The Counter on King who walked down from her store to the firefighters with a tray of food along with hot and cold drinks that were greatly appreciated after battling the fire.
Author: Pete Fisher
Has been a photojournalist for over 30-years and have been honoured to win numerous awards for photography and writing over the years. Best selling author for the book Highway of Heroes - True Patriot Love
