The Croft survives
It’s been a while, but not long enough, since we had a downtown fire but yesterday one broke out in the old City Second Hand building at 4th and Dominion.
The former City Second Hand store is located at the northeast corner of 4th Avenue and Dominion Street. The building was reportedly being used to store furniture.
The city closed surrounding roads as smoke filled the downtown. Bylaw officers arrived first, followed by police for traffic control as fire crews battled the blaze. There were five trucks and about 25 firefighters on scene.
My Prince George Now has video footage, as does CKPG. Reportedly no injuries and no word of cause yet, though that will come. Here’s the word from the city:
UPDATE AT 5:15pm: From Fire Chief Cliff Warner “The crews have managed to knock down the fire. There was a real concern for losing the surrounding buildings. The guys did an unbelievable job saving The Croft. Crews will remain onsite into the night managing the fire. There were no injuries to report.”
In Prince George Memories, people are recalling it being a gas or service station and a car dealership in the past.
Another fire prep tip
Jen Cherm writes:
One additional tip I would like to add is when people are doing their initial preparedness around the home, they are also thinking of cataloging their contents for potential insurance claims down the road. One really easy and efficient way to do this is to record a video walkthrough of all the rooms in your home. This will provide solid evidence for insurance claims and assist your post-tragedy brain in compiling this information if your home is lost.
News roundup:
Something glowing was seen over Foothills, according to two separate Reddit posts. Theories include comet, UFO and the SpaceX starship breaking up.
Premier says Prince George will get dedicated mental health resources.
No details as College of New Caledonia discusses possible layoffs.
Moccasin Flats cleanup continues as city makes plans for permanent closure of downtown site.
Simon Yu and 15 other BC mayors outline priorities for premier.
Port Coquitlam Mayor says BC giving too much power to natural resource naysayers,
Budget deliberations begin next week. A proposed tax hike of 5.83 per cent is on the table.
Businessman donates Prince George drag strip to not-for-profit NITRO society.
Mayor and Prince George Hospice Palliative Care Society hosting Chinese New Year fundraiser.
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Watching the building burn to the ground was like a community event. Saw a lot of people I hadn’t seen in a while! The firefighters were amazing and daydream donuts came out with snacks for the first responders. There was also a solid contingent of people nervously watching the Croft holding vigil. So glad to hear that institution is still standing.
How touching that PoCo Mayor Brad West came all this way to perform his faux populist act for a PG audience - riding the gravy train all the way on his multi-dipping salary of $342,512 (https://globalnews.ca/news/10958296/metro-vancouver-politician-pay/).