The Ontario Fire Marshal (OFM) will assist the Orillia Fire Department in investigating the fire that gutted Studabakers Beachside Bar and Grill in the early morning hours Monday.
Orillia Fire Chief Ralph Dominelli said fire services in the province are required to contact the OFM office in certain cases. “One of the protocols that requires we contact the (OFM) is if the damage caused by the fire is over $500,000,” he said, noting he estimates damage to the Mississaga Street East business at about $750,000.
Dominelli said he expects the OFM official to be on scene almost immediately. He said he and his staff will join the OFM official to continue the probe into the fire that caused extensive damage to the building’s interior.
While it’s too early to pinpoint a cause, Dominelli said “at this time, there is no evidence to support that it’s a suspicious fire.”
Studabakers owner Joe Winacott said the bar had closed at 11 p.m. Sunday. He received a phone call at around 3 a.m. summoning him to the scene. “We planned renovations next month,” he said, fighting back emotions. “Right now, it’s so early ... but our goal is to get open as fast as we can.”
Despite the devastation wrought by the fire, Winacott said he was “just glad no staff or customers were there and no firefighters got injured,” he said. “Things can be repaired. It’s why we have insurance.”
Dominelli said crews arrived on the scene at around 3 a.m. He said the OPP arrived first, responding to a general alarm. “They witnessed heavy smoke coming from the roof area and around the ventilation system,” Dominelli said. “When our guys arrived, they also saw heavy smoke … they had to force entry in the front door.”
The fire means a lot of people are suddenly out of work. “It’s a big blow” for the 30 to 40 people that work at Studabakers, Winnacot said, noting that number rises to 60 in the summer. “It sounds like this could take a while. I don’t really know how the process works but we want to let our employees know that, hopefully, we will be back.”
