Volunteer firefighters praised for containing fire at Verona, Ont. store
Residents in a small town north of Kingston, Ont. are praising the work of volunteer firefighters, after they managed to contain a fire in a corner store that had the potential to get out of control.
The fire broke out Wednesday in Verona, Ont., 30 minutes north of Kingston, where fireworks went off as the store burned.
Video provided to CTV News Ottawa by Stephen Clow showed billowing black smoke coming from the convenience store, with a gas station just steps away. In the video, you can hear popping sounds.
Clow says those were fireworks going off inside the store.
"What this camera on the phone picks up is nothing compared to what we heard," Clow explains. "It was almost apocalyptic at times seeing that black and the booming going off."
A fire destroyed Toppers Convenience in Verona, Ont. on Wednesday. (Kimberley Johnson/CTV News Ottawa)
The fire broke out at Toppers Convenience just before 3 p.m. Wednesday. South Frontenac interim fire Chief Alex Bennett says initial information suggests the fire began in one of the two homes attached to the back of the store, then quickly spread.
"They were big fireworks, like Canada Day-types; they weren’t little kids in the backyard types. It was like 'boom' and going up in the air," Clow says.
The volunteer firefighters quickly worked to contain a difficult scene. The store's gas station sits just steps away, as well as propane tanks being sold by the store.
That’s something local resident Mike Collins noticed immediately.
"They bravely sat in front of a propane cage containing that," he says.
Bennett confirms there were also downed power lines and extremely dry conditions to deal with.
"We had a lot of things on our plate from the get-go," he explains. "However, we did pull a substantial amount of resources en route to ensure we had, first of all, a good water supply on things (and) manpower to conduct a safe operations on things."
There were no injuries. Local residents say three people lived in the building, and the fire was put out within a few hours with the help of Kingston Fire and Stone Mills Township.
Collins and others in the town are praising the quick work of first responders.
"They never backed down," he says. "They did a fantastic job. They did an amazing job of keeping it contained to one building, under extremely dry conditions."
Resident Arnold Snider says the loss of the town's only gas station will be felt by many people who used the convenience store.
"It’s a loss to the community," he says. "And small communities can’t afford to lose businesses."
But Clow says the town will continue to support those impacted, while the investigation continues.
"Communities reaching out to help them out."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
One dead, 26 wounded in overnight shooting in Ohio: reports
A shooting on a street in Akron, Ohio, killed one man and wounded 26 other people early Sunday morning, according to reports by local news outlets.
Bathroom break nearly derails $22 million project at city council meeting
A brief break during Wednesday's city council meeting in Saskatoon nearly cost the city dearly.
Lanny McDonald and a few old Flames take the Stanley Cup on a surprise visit to the man who saved his life
The Stanley Cup was passing through town Friday, and Lanny Legend took it upon himself to take it for a surprise visit.
Ambassador says interactions with Russia 'quite limited' but 'not unfriendly'
Canada's ambassador to Russia says while Ottawa has 'grave concerns' about the Kremlin's 'longer-term trends,' the war in Ukraine is 'a primary barrier to a change in the relationship.'
South Korea vows 'unbearable' retaliation against North Korea over its launch of trash balloons
South Korea said Sunday it’ll soon take retaliatory steps against North Korea over its launch of trash-carrying balloons across the border and other provocations.
Chad Daybell sentenced to death for killing wife and girlfriend’s two children in jury decision
Jurors resumed deliberations Saturday on whether a man should be sentenced to death after being convicted days earlier of the murders of his wife and his girlfriend’s two youngest children in Idaho.
Robert Pickton stabbed with toothbrush and broken broom handle: victim's family
The family of one of Robert Pickton's victims says the convicted serial killer suffered an incredibly violent death at the hands of another inmate.
Father who killed one-year-old son with axe may be allowed to travel in southwestern Ontario
A Mennonite father who killed his one-year-old son with an axe may be allowed to travel to parts of southern Ontario in the coming months
'It feels like freedom': Why some Albertans like going nude in nature
Few people can say they accidentally purchased a nude beach — but Shelley can. When she saw a piece of land she could fondly remember camping on was up for sale, she inquired about it and ended up purchasing it. She soon found that there were already inhabitants on it.