UPDATE 9:45 am – Kamloops Fire Rescue is asking people to avoid traveling downtown at the moment, as their crews work to try to douse the remains of a fire at the historic St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church at 2nd and Seymour.
The fully wooden church – popular with tourists and weddings – caught fire shortly before 9am.
It’s not clear yet how much damage has been done to the building itself.
Early indications are the fire may have started in the back alley behind the building.
According to Kamloops Fire Rescue, the fire damaged a transformer, cutting power to a wide section of downtown.
Extent of power outage caused by St. Andrew’s fire/via BC Hydro
Public transit too and from downtown has also been rerouted as a result.
According to the City of Kamloops, which maintains the building, St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church is the oldest remaining public building in Kamloops.
It was built shortly after Canadian Pacific Railway construction was completed through Kamloops in 1887.
The church was built of wood in the days before brick construction in Kamloops.
-
Fire at St. Andrew’s Church in downtown Kamloops/via Jon Keen
-
Fire at St. Andrew’s Church in downtown Kamloops/via Jon Keen
-
Fire at St. Andrew’s Church in downtown Kamloops/via Jon Keen
-
Fire at St. Andrew’s Church in downtown Kamloops/via Jon Keen
More to eat…
