25 Newcastle Ave. will likely be dismantled after a fire erupted last week. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By Ian Holmes

investigation complete

Weed-destroying torch ignited stubborn Nanaimo fire

May 14, 2025 | 4:17 PM

NANAIMO — Yard maintenance work went awry when flames applied to weeds unknowingly spread inside an old stucco building along Nanaimo’s Newcastle Ave.

It took Nanaimo Fire Rescue (NFR) crews several hours to extinguish flames last week inside a former single-family home used as storage by the neighbouring Sands Funeral Chapel on Newcastle Ave.

NFR captain and fire prevention officer Alan Millbank said the Thursday, May 8 blaze saw numerous combustibles ignited when a torch was applied at the front of the building.

“It appears that a propane torch was applied to the exterior for burning weeds at the time of the fire. It had contacted combustible material in the wall assembly of the exterior wall,” Millbank told NanaimoNewsNOW.

NFR crews used a chainsaw and sledgehammers to punch through the building to help douse the flames. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

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He said a thin area of stucco where two walls met was exposed by the propane torch, causing flammable materials like various forms of wood, tar paper and an electrical circuit to catch fire.

Millbank said the fire reached a considerable size before it was noticed.

Nobody was inside the two-storey structure at the time.

“The fire started in the basement exterior wall, made its way through the framing up to the roof, that’s when they started seeing it and reported it when the smoke was seen coming out through the roof.”

He said it appears the building is a write-off following the accidental fire.

Millbank added this incident highlights the importance of exercising extreme caution while using fire torches for yard maintenance purposes.

NFR crews were forced to use a defensive posture to snuff out the fire.

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