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By Ian Gustafson
The owners of LT’s Food and Fuel are thanking the community and the fire departments for their support after part of the business went up in flames Wednesday.
Hong Cam and his wife Theresa, who have owned and run the popular business since 2013, said thanks to the responding fire departments and the quick thinking of a customer, their main building is still standing and operating.
Cam explained in the early afternoon Wednesday he was working the till inside the gas station when a passerby travelling down the highway came inside to tell him there was smoke coming from the back building — a motel they also own — and it might be on fire.
Surprised by the news, Cam went outside to check it out for himself and immediately told his brother to call 911. He then went upstairs to the living quarters to wake his wife from a nap and get her out of the building.
While they waited for the fire department to arrive, he grabbed a fire extinguisher to attempt to put out the blaze through the back door. Another man grabbed a shovel to put snow on the flames.
Cam said at that point the building was already fully engulfed in flames. They then rushed to turn off the breaker and the propane tanks.
Crews from the Lakeland and District Fire Department, Waskesiu Fire Department, Buckland Fire Rescue, Montreal Lake Fire Department, OSS Water Hauling and SPSA Weyakwin Fire Base responded to the blaze. Through attacking the fire, they were able to prevent the fire from spreading to the main building.
“The wind helped a lot,” Cam told paNOW. “At first when the fire department arrived, they thought that we would lose the main building because the wind was facing south but all of the sudden the wind changed direction and went to the north. From my main building and the motel in the back is only five metres apart.”
However, he said the main building wasn’t completely untouched as the flames damaged the window in the living quarters. Cam said the window “exploded” but the wall and everything else was fine. He explained the fire also spread into the bush behind the motel.
“Basically, it’s so intense, it’s so fast. The wind just picked it up so quickly,” Cam said.
An update Wednesday on the Lakeland and District Fire Department’s Facebook page said no one was injured and the cause of the fire was under investigation.
Cam said he has no idea how the fire started and added if the customer didn’t take quick action to tell him, he may not have known for some time and the result could have been much worse.
The motel was a total loss for the couple and Cam said the building was burned to the ground. They are currently working on the next step as their insurance company is coming out soon to take a look at the building and assess what they’re going to do.
The local business is located approximately 45 minutes north of Prince Albert on Highway 2 at the turnoff to Waskesiu. LT’s Food and Fuel sees a lot of traffic every day and Cam said it’s a popular place for those who pass by and for tourists during the summer.
He added they feel so much support from the neighbourhood, the community and the fire departments who have helped them.
“All the neighbours (are) phoning us if we need any food or whatever there. It kind of (makes me) feel very warm inside, very warm,” Cam said.
Despite their situation, LT’s Food and Fuel was still open for business on Thursday.
“I’d just like to express our thanks to the neighbour, to the fire department from Christopher Lake and the park,” Cam said. “They all showed their support to us, and they do a very good job.”
