A fire that broke out just before midnight Wednesday has gutted the Beaver Bank Kinsac Community Centre and its attached volunteer fire department.
The fire station side of the building suffered the least damage. Firefighters responding to the blaze were able to remove fire trucks and equipment from the fire department's side of the building. Click here for fire Photo Gallery and Click here for Video
No one was injured in the blaze, but smoke still billowing in the area in the wake of the devastating fire has led to the closure of the nearby Beaver Bank-Kinsac Elementary School for today.
The not-for-profit, multipurpose community centre opened its doors in 2004 with great fanfare. Since then, it has been a popular, well-used gathering place and a source of pride for people in the community.
In addition to the fire department and its bays, the centre housed the RCMP's community policing office, a computer-access site, and the Beaver Bank Children's Learning Centre day care.
Everything from community meetings to guitar lessons, taekwondo, a dart league and a summer day camp operated out of the centre. A kids ball hockey program was set to begin next week, and an Oktoberfest event was slated for Oct. 3.
The centre has also served as the focal point for the community's increasingly popular annual tree lighting ceremony.
The large two-storey facility included a full kitchen, large multipurpose room, board room, children's programming room, two adjoining lounges and a community lounge.
Investigators are still on scene and the cause of the blaze is not known at this time.
