A Monday night fire in North Battleford is now considered suspicious. A warehouse was destroyed and has been ordered demolished immediately because of safety concerns.

The warehouse where the fire broke out is across the street from the fire department. A passerby noticed smoke around 9:00 p.m. Monday and went right into the fire department to tell officials. But even with the quick response time, crews say the blaze was already too intense to even try to go inside.

The fire chief is calling the blaze dramatic and intense. It's the biggest structure fire in North Battleford in a decade. Crews had to focus on protecting nearby buildings instead.

"This was a defensive fire from the onset," says Chief Pat MacIsaac. "Between the brief time span the fire was reported to when crews were ready to attack, it had progressed to the point where entry into the building was not possible and this is a couple hundred feet away from the fire hall. We focused on protecting adjacent properties."

Now, officials are asking the public to stay away from the building on 104th Street and Railway Avenue because the structure is unstable and dangerous, and it will have to be demolished.

Crews are still investigating how the fire started.