Vancouver’s Ross Street Sikh temple damaged by early morning fire

South Vancouver’s Gurdwara Sahib Sikh is likely to be closed for a while following a fire early Friday morning.

Vancouver Fire and Rescue Services was called to the temple, which is located at 8000 Ross St., shortly after 2:20 a.m. Firefighters arrived on scene about five minutes later and found that there was a fire inside the temple in what is described as an open praying area.

“The fire had actually gone up the wall into the mezzanine and got the second floor going,” said Assistant Chief Dale Booth.

There was too much smoke and heat for firefighters to remain inside the building, so they retreated outside and fought the fire from there. Firefighters cut ventilation holes in the roof and set up positive pressure fans in the doorways to pump fresh air into the temple and force the heat, smoke and gases out.

Booth said this kind of situation is common in buildings like the temple that are large, concrete and have few windows.

Once firefighters were able to gain access to the temple again, they quickly found the seat of the fire and knocked it down. It took about two hours to put the fire out.

Booth didn’t know whether anyone was at the temple when the fire started. There were no reported injuries.

Fire investigators remained at the scene on Friday morning. The cause of the fire has not been determined, however it’s believed to have started in the open prayer area.

The temple’s mezzanine area suffered the most fire damage, Booth said, and there was damage to the roof and the interior of the rear gallery from firefighting.

“I would think it’s going to be closed for a while,” Booth said.

According to reports, a wedding was scheduled to take place at the temple this weekend, and it will have to be moved.

The Ross Street gurdwara, which is run by the Khalsa Diwan Society of Vancouver, was built in 1970. There are plans to renovate and expand the temple.

On its Facebook page, the Khalsa Diwan Society thanked firefighters for their “immediate” response to the fire and confirmed that no one was hurt.

“This is a time for solidarity and we must stand together United,” the society wrote.