'Blessing that nobody was inside': Fire levels home in Goderich

Goderich fire battled blaze A home on Goderich’s Victoria Street is a pile of rubble Wednesday night after fire ravaged the brick home early in the morning.

A home on Goderich’s Victoria Street is a pile of rubble Wednesday night after fire ravaged the brick home early in the morning.

“We were paged out about 6:45 this morning. When I arrived on scene, there was a lot of smoke. It was actually difficult to see the location. Heavy, heavy fire in the roof of the building. We were unable to make entrance. It wasn't worth the safety for our guys to [go] inside. Unfortunately, as you can see, the building had to come down due to safety concerns and to give us an advantage into suppressing the fire. It was a very stubborn fire. So, we had to order an emergency demolition on the home to protect the neighboring properties,” said Goderich Fire Chief Jeff Wormington.

The fire, which Wormington said was focused in the roof and attic, is not considered suspicious. No one was injured in the blaze that forced the closure of a section of Victoria Street, better known as Highway 21, through Goderich for most of the day.

“No one was home at the time. It was a vacant building as far as we can tell. So, it's a blessing that nobody was inside,” said Wormington.

The roadway in front of the fire scene reopened shortly after 1 p.m.