Redcliff fire crews battle structure fire

Firefighters from Cypress County also attended the scene to help.

Gleisner said the aid from Cypress County was much needed given the size of the fire and to help keep crews safe amid the heatwave.

“ It helped a lot because if you have more people, there is less work and less risk of heat exhaustion,” he said.

Despite the fire occurring in the morning, crews were already working in hot temperatures. Both from the fire and the outside environment. EMS was on scene to check the heart rate and oxygen levels of the firefighters, and water bottles were distributed to ensure all members stayed hydrated.

As for if the warm, dry weather played any type of a role in the cause of the blaze. The fire chief said it is too early to tell at this point.

“Until we can actually get inside, and do what is called overhaul to try and determine the origin of the fire. Right now we are not certain. We know it approximately started in the back half of the building, the north half, but that’s all we can tell right now,” he said.

Half of the building’s roof collapsed early on in the fire. Fire Chief Gleisner said crews are now working to remove the debris from the collapsed roof so that they can extinguish the fire underneath.

Construction equipment was used on the roof that remained intact so that crews could further attack the blaze.

“It is a metal roof building and metal is nice because it keeps the weather out, but that’s exactly what it does for the water as well. You can’t put water on the roof because it just sheds it, it runs off so we have to open the roof up to get at the fire,” he said.

No one was hurt in the blaze.

by Tiffany Goodwein

Redcliff fire crews battle structure fire

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