Fire ravages Winkler hotel

A significant portion of the middle section of the hotel was destroyed in the fire that occurred on Tuesday April 29, 2025. (Felicia Penner)

Tuesday, April 29 is a day Felicia Penner would like to forget as her hotel was uprooted from a significant structural fire.

“We’re in day-by-day mode, and my main focus is my staff and making sure that they have the supports in place that they need right now,” said Penner, general manager at Winkler’s Quality Inn and Suites.

Penner has worked in management at the hotel since September 2023.

At 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday afternoon, the Winkler Fire Department was called to the hotel with fire alarms ringing and smoke filling the air in the building.

Penner said the investigation is ongoing as to the cause of the fire. She said there is extensive damage to the middle section of the building which housed a Smitty’s Restaurant.

“There is damage in the lobby, there’s damage obviously in the middle area, we had a beautiful cedar plank feature ceiling in our pool area,” Penner said.

“The second it hit that you just watched from the outside as it trickled across the roof.”

She said everyone was able to safely evacuate from the hotel and no injuries were reported. A number of Winkler residents and businesses in the community have reached out with their support over the past few days.

“Just the community response has been overwhelming,” Penner said.

“It’s been really sweet to hear everybody’s stories because like I said, it’s not just our workplace. It’s a place where people came for a funeral or for a wedding. It was a place of joy and a place of sadness and a place of refuge for so many other people for so many years.”

Penner said the conference center in the basement of the hotel was home to many socials and get togethers over the years.

She said it’s too early to tell if ownership will be able to rebuild and salvage the rest of the building for operation.

“It’s a little bit apocalyptic going through there,” she said.

Still, she is grateful for the number of individuals reaching out for support and is hopeful to give another update to the public soon.

“We’re grieving, but the community is grieving as well with us,” she said.

CTV News has reached out to the Winkler Fire Department for more information.