A fire broke out shortly before 8:40 a.m. on November 1 at the Épicerie du Coin in Saint-Alexandre-de-Kamouraska, located on Route 289. Despite heavy damage caused to the building, firefighters were able to to save the food trade.
“When we arrived, the building was already evacuated, people did what they had to do. The owners of the company even had time to close the electrical circuits,” says the director of the KamEst Fire Safety Service, Robin Laplante.
The fire, of electrical origin, started in the area of the engine room panels. Thick smoke and flames were coming from it. The firefighters accessed the building from behind, which caused a small delay, since the trucks could not get there. Once there, they quickly put down the fire. “It’s electricity, so they were still careful,” assures Mr. Laplante.
A spread was also detected in the attic of the grocery section. A ladder truck was deployed to help crews ventilate the roof. The latter was pierced, using gaffs and mechanical saws, in four places to allow the hot gases to escape, and avoid losing the trade.
Around 9:45 a.m., the director of SSI KamEst considered the fire under control. “Our teams are currently in the attic putting out the last fires,” he explains. He expected to stay on site for another good hour.
He was able to count on the help of 25 firefighters from the group. Four firefighters from Saint-Antonin also joined them to give a helping hand. A police officer from the Sûreté du Québec, an employee of the Ministry of Transport and road workers from Saint-Alexandre took care of the traffic.
Route 289 remained open during the intervention. Route 230 and Rang Saint-Clovis were closed to traffic during the operation.
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