The front of the building at 410 Wentworth St. suffered major damage during a Saturday evening blaze. (Kyle Ireland/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By NanaimoNewsNOW Staff

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NANAIMO — A home-turned-dental office in the city’s downtown is all-but destroyed after a late evening fire.

Calls to 911 were made around 7:50 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 19 after flames were spotted coming from the building at 410 Wentworth St., at the corner of Richard St.

Nanaimo Fire Rescue assistant chief Troy Libbus told NanaimoNewsNOW multiple crews rushed to the scene to find a fully involved building.

“[Firefighters] quick hit it with a 2.5 inch line from the outside of the home. Other crews responded, we had three more engines respond to this then we quickly got it under control.”

Flames were clearly visible from the dentist’s office. (submitted photo/James Denby)

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Libbus said the home’s smoke detectors were sounding when they arrived, a good sign if had anyone been inside at the time.

He added no-one was found in the wreck after flames were doused and the scene was handed over to Nanaimo RCMP for further investigation.

Libbus said he was unable to comment on the nature of the investigation, or the fire’s cause.

One of the more challenging aspects of this fire, and others this time of year according to Libbus, is monitoring the surrounding area.

“With the dry summer weather, any fire is a concern to us with embers flying anywhere. With the multiple crew response, we have initial crew hitting the fire right off the start to pause the fire, we have other crews doing 360’s to locate any other exposures and we always keep an eye on the scene and around.”

Libbus also praised the callers to 911 for helping get Fire Rescue crews to scene so quickly and encouraged people who see any fire activity to err on the side of caution and call 911.

Substantial damage remains from a fire along Wentworth St. Saturday evening. (Kyle Ireland/NanaimoNewsNOW)

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