NEW WESTMINSTER, B.C. — A waterfront park along the Fraser River in New Westminster, B.C., has been extensively damaged by a major fire.
New Westminster Mayor Jonathan Cote called the situation at Pier Park "devastating" in a social media message posted late Sunday night.
The park was built in 2009 and includes a lengthy boardwalk along a reclaimed pier just west of a SkyTrain bridge linking Surrey and New Westminster.
Cote's Twitter message says it is likely the old pier has been destroyed, while fire officials say the blaze has worked into the creosote pilings beneath the boardwalk and could burn for days.
Crews from several surrounding cities and a fire boat from Vancouver joined New Westminster firefighters in battling the flames, which broke out at about 8 p.m. Sunday.
@VanFireRescue Fireboat 1 on scene at pier fire in New Westminster assisting @NewWestFF @newwestpolice. Great job by Capt Bridger and crew dealing with the dark, heavy black smoke and strong river currents. @GlobalBC @CBCVancouver @CTVVancouver @CKNW pic.twitter.com/gC2riggciw
— Assistant Chief Operations Connelly - VFRS (@ACOpsConnelly) September 14, 2020
Downtown resident Curtis Stanley told the New Westminster Record he noticed the fire just after 8 p.m.
“I went up on my roof and then I saw a black cloud of smoke. I was like, ‘this is going to get interesting.’ I took a step forward and saw it start to turn orange,” he said. “I ran down here.”
No one has been hurt and the SkyTrain bridge, which was closed overnight, reopened in time for the Monday morning commute, but a busy street running parallel to the park remains closed.
- With additional reporting from Theresa McManus/New Westminster Record
This report from The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 14, 2020
