Saskatoon strip mall fire causes $500K in damage, caused by extension cords

SASKATOON -

A fire at a downtown strip mall Saturday night caused roughly $500,000 in damage.

On Saturday, at 6:10 p.m., the fire department received a 911 call reporting a possible fire in the kitchen of a convenience store at 25th Street and Second Avenue.

First arriving crews reported a fire in the adjoining business in the center of a strip mall, according to a news release.

The battalion chief did a complete walk around and noted seeing heavy smoke from the front and back of the business, the news release said.

Firefighters began extinguishing the fire and all utilities on the property were shut down for safety reasons.

The fire department said at 6:25 p.m., the ceiling collapsed inside the business where most of the fire was burning. Minutes later, fire crews noticed the roof was “sagging in a downward direction,” so the battalion chief called for all firefighters to exit the building due to risk of the roof collapsing, the release said.

Firefighters continued extinguishing the blaze from ladders against the building, without going onto the roof.

The fire and police investigators determined an extension cord plugged into a timer that was being served by another extension cord caused the fire. The fire department said the blaze traveled along the cord, went up the wall and into the ceiling, catching the roof on fire.

No injuries were reported, according to the release. The fire department is reminding people not to use extension cords as a permanent means of wiring.

“Safe practice is to have all small and large appliances plugged directly into an outlet. Extension cords are a temporary source of electricity. Exterior extension cords are heavily insulated to ‘weather’ the cold to supply electricity outdoors. An example is our vehicles during the cold months use exterior extension cords as the cooler weather allows the wiring to stay cool internally. Interior extension cords should not be plugged in for long periods of time. They need to be unplugged so they don't overheat internally or overload an electrical circuit and cause a fire. As a safety measure, always check the condition of your extension cords to ensure they are not frayed, damaged or showing signs of aging. Replace extension cords as needed,” the release said.

The building has now been turned over to the property owner’s agent who will be responsible for securing the structure.