Town of Kyle reeling after hotel destroyed
Local fire chief calls Wednesday’s blaze worst he’s seen in 30 years
Residents and business owners in Kyle are tossing around ideas to try to get a local business back up and running after the town’s only hotel was destroyed by fire Wednesday night.
“We’re going to be scrambling. We have no accommodations for our tourists or anybody coming through,” Mayor Doug said.
He said residents have talked of mobilizing to get the motel ready for wedding season.
The idea is something longtime Kyle resident Wanda Brown hopes comes to fruition.
“That would be awesome if somebody bought that and revived it, but in small towns it’s really hard to keep a small business going,” she said. “I don’t know if we can get back a hotel.”
She said a business like the Kyle Hotel is essential to help a town flourish.
Built in 1946, it was the only bar and hotel in the town located approximately 200 kilometres southwest of Saskatoon.
“It’s very sad. I could hardly sleep last night,” said an emotional Brown. “It’s a terrible blow to our
community.”
Brown and her family run Rebco Service, a gas station and confectionary that has been in Kyle for almost 30 years. She said the hotel was an integral part of the community and a place that holds a lot of memories for all who walked through its doors.
“It’s a meeting place. It’s a gathering place,” she said. “When I was young ... that’s where we were all so excited to have our first legal drink.”
The fire broke out at approximately 5:30 p.m. Wednesday. Town councillor, Brian Knight, had just gotten home from a meeting when he got the call. He said by 8 p.m. the hotel was levelled.
“Terribly strong winds had hit just about the same time as the fire broke out,” he said.
Kyle Fire Chief George Akister
said he hasn’t seen a fire this bad in his 30 years as chief in the small town.
“The wind was so bad. It just didn’t let up and it was about 60 (kilometres an hour),” he said.
Don Moare owns The Farmer’s Grill next door to where the Kyle Hotel once stood. The building that houses his restaurant also houses his living quarters.
He said RCMP banged on his door and told him to evacuate.
“When I stepped outside I seen ... the flames coming up near the deck and then through the top floor door, there was black smoke pouring out,” said Moare. “And from then on it was just a matter of how much ashes was going to be left.”
He described the scene of the fire Thursday morning as a pile of ashes still smouldering from the night before.
It’s a gathering place. When I was young ... that’s where we were all so excited to have our first legal drink.
With only an alley separating his business from the hotel, Moare said the fire singed one corner of the restaurant. He suspects there is approximately $2,500 to $3,000 worth of damage.
Barker said the hotel was a mainstay of the community.
“At six o’clock in the morning the men always went down there for coffee,” he said. “Then at 10 o’clock the women all took over.”
As is often the case in small towns during big emergencies, the community and those in surrounding areas rallied.
Volunteer fire departments from Elrose, Lacadena and Beechy came to help alongside the Kyle and District Fire Department. Farmers came with sprayers and folks from the Matador Hutterite Colony brought water trucks.
“If we hadn’t have had all those people there last night we would have lost more businesses downtown,” said Brown. “We’d have lost the Credit Union I’m sure.”
According to Barker, the Prairie Centre Credit Union across the street from the hotel sustained some smoke damage and lost its outer windows.
Firefighters remained on site Thursday to take care of a few left over hot spots. There were no reported injuries and an investigation into the cause of the fire is ongoing.
“I am so proud of the community and the area for the support,” said Barker. “It’s a great community to be in and we’ll still be a great community.”