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WATCH: Business burns in Blindman Industrial Park north of Red Deer

Fire started Friday morning and involved firefighters from three departments

A Blindman Industrial Park business was badly damaged during a Friday morning fire.

The fire started in one garage bay, but quickly spread throughout the CEDA building, leaving much of it damaged.

Firefighters from Red Deer County, City of Red Deer and Blackfalds, fought the blaze that began at CEDA shortly before 8 a.m. The fire was contained by about 12:30 p.m., but crews remained on scene all day.

Ric Henderson, Red Deer County Director of Emergency Management, said the investigation wouldn’t get started until Saturday, at the earliest.

“There was quite a lot of damage,” said Henderson. “The fire is out now, and now its a matter of cleanup.

“The investigation won’t start for probably a day or so. There were a lot of chemicals in the building so we need to make sure it’s safe to do the investigation.”

Henderson said there were a couple of minor injuries to firefighters at the scene. A statement from CEDA said all staff members escaped the building without injury.

The building was evacuated at the time of the fire. Henderson said neighbouring businesses were evacuated as a safety precaution. People were back inside the adjacent buildings by 12 p.m.

There’s no estimate on how much damage was caused, but Henderson said it was “a lot.”

A statement from CEDA said emergency protocols were immediately activated, and all personnel were evacuated from the area. The cause of the fire is not yet known, and no estimate of damage is available.

The company is making arrangement to ensure employees are able to return to work by utilizing CEDA’s other regional office within Red Deer. They do not expect significant interruptions to their services.



mcrawford@reddeeradvocate.com

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