Provincewide support for Yorkton fire victims
REGINA — Fifty Yorkton residents are settling into new homes a week after their apartment building was destroyed by fire.
The complex, built as a hospital in 1902 before its conversion into a living space in 1962, burned on Dec. 3. The displaced tenants were put up at a hotel while the building’s owner, Avenue Living, found new apartments for them.
“The people have been 100 per cent of our focus; we just began preliminary discussions around the building and the site,” company spokesperson Jodi Baker said in an email.
Avenue Living is waiting for the Yorkton fire department’s findings on the cause of the blaze.
The company has also offered financial support for residents in their first month in their new apartments.
Mayor Bob Maloney said people should contact the Salvation Army ahead of time to ensure the group receives items it needs most, like coffee pots and microwaves. Clothes are already in abundant supply.
“I think we’ve probably got too much of what we don’t need, and not enough of what we need at this point,” Maloney said.
Melanie Horton, outreach co-ordinator for the Red Cross central Saskatchewan branch, said the days following the fire were eased by community support.
Donations have come from residents and businesses in Regina, Saskatoon and even Swan River, Manitoba.
The Red Cross and Salvation Army also provided vouchers and hampers for food and clothing. They are still in Yorkton surveying people’s needs, and seeking large furniture like beds for the displaced tenants. Flaman Rentals has offered to supply mattresses to the Red Cross.
Fire Chief Trevor Morrisey said the fire started in one of the building’s storage rooms, which had “limited ignition sources.”
He said the building’s age and construction type contributed to the fire’s spread, citing the roof insulation as a large contributing factor. It contained wood shavings that acted as kindling for the blaze.