The Ontario Office of the Fire Marshal’s investigation into a blaze that gutted a local business has come to a close one year after the devastating fire.
The fire destroyed Fresh Air and Cyclepath on North May Street on the evening of Aug. 28. When firefighters arrived on scene, smoke was already pouring from the building and the blaze had spread to the store's showroom.
The incident caused major damages, and forced Fresh Air to move into a new location on Balmoral Street.
Initial reports indicated the blaze may have been an arson.
But local Ontario Fire Marshal investigator Tim Irish said he's concluded that the cause is undetermined.
“Through an exhaustive investigation and fire pattern analysis I was able to determine where the area of origin was located,” Irish said of the investigation during an interview with CKPR Radio Thursday.
“As a result of that through a number of hypotheses that were developed in regards to the cause, I was able to eliminate several hypotheses.”
Irish said he was left with two possibilities, but did not have enough evidence to conclude one hypothesis over the other.
“That is why I’ve ended up with a cause of undetermined.”
The final report narrows down the point of origin to the exterior of the store, around the back.
The fire came shortly after the grand re-opening that featured a newly renovated Fresh Air Experience and Cyclepath. Both longtime local businesses had merged months before the fire.
The building, no longer a home to Fresh Air, has undergone restoration work and will soon have some new tenants.
