NEW MINAS – The owners of Bruce Hyundai are praising the actions of local firefighters after a fire broke out in the Prospect Road business during the after hours.
“The response was amazing. Within minutes of the call, an RCMP officer arrived on site, followed quickly by the New Minas and Kentville fire departments. Scores of firefighters applied their expertise and quickly suppressed the fire. Quick action contained the fire to one room off the wash bay area,” reads a statement posted on Bruce Hyundai’s Facebook page June 5.
“These responders, many of who are volunteers, are professionals in the truest sense of the word. Putting out the fire was just the beginning.”
New Minas Fire Chief James Redmond says the call for service came in after an alarm sounded at the business shortly before 9 p.m. June 4.
“The person who came to check out the burglar alarm found smoke coming out of the vents of the building,” said Redmond.
“When we got there the building was full of smoke, and there was smoke exhausting from several areas of the south side of the building.”
Firefighters contended with locked doors and heavy smoke in making their way to the flames, but were able to contain the blaze in short order once it was located.
“It was a challenging call in that we had difficulty ejecting the toxic smoke from the building but once we found the scene of the fire, it was quickly extinguished,” said Redmond.
The fire was found in a wall and the ceiling near the floor for the upstairs offices, boardroom and lounge area, Redmond said.
“Unfortunately, the building experienced some structural damage, certainly to the interior wall and the floor joist for the upstairs offices, and there was extensive smoke damage throughout.”
Firefighters from the New Minas and Kentville departments teamed up to respond to the incident, with roughly 50 volunteers assisting with the call for service that lasted about three hours.
“Electrical is the prime suspect unless further investigation determines otherwise,” said Redmond.
The Barker family, owners of Bruce Auto Group franchises from New Minas to Yarmouth, profusely thanked all who responded for making it possible for the workplace employing more than 50 people to return to business as usual in a timely manner.
“Despite the late hours, no one left early - not a single person. These people cared. They answered our questions and concerns with patience. Long after the fire was out, the team was still helping. Aerial 41 even brought down their hovercraft, using its enormous fan to quickly bring fresh air into the building,” Bruce Hyundai’s Facebook post relating to the fire reads.
“We have no doubt, had it not been for the quick response for the New Minas and Kentville fire departments, this incident could have been much worse.”
