Mayor Darryl Krakowka says that the cause of the fire that destroyed 216 Spieker and set off a small forest fire in town may never be known.
The fire, which started on June 7, destroyed 51 units, leaving many families and individuals without a place to stay.
“Because of the size of the fire, it’s probably going to be that the cause is listed as ‘undetermined,’” says the mayor. He says the issue is that because the fire destroyed so much of the building, it will be hard to pinpoint an exact ignition point.
He says the district has managed to contact all the owners of the properties. “I asked staff to try to get a number of how many vacant apartments we had,” says Krakowka. “There were approximately 20 units that were not inhabited.”
While it means that there were 31 units that had people in them, the impact is not as bad as it could have been.
He says the district has been doing it’s due diligence, and recently sent a letter to all the owners. “We’ve looked into it, and there’s nothing we can do when it comes to taxation. My understanding is, through BC Assessment, it will be re-assessed next year, though I’m not sure how they’re going to do that. So what the implication for taxation would be there? I’m not sure. So I think we’re still trying to get some more information on what that looks like in 2026. But talking with a couple of the owners that had properties, they still have to pay their strata fees as well. And if you if hadn’t finished paying your mortgage, you would still have to be paying it as well. So it’s not just taxes. And it’s devastating.”
He says the district does not have the authority to cancel municipal taxes on its own, and the Province has said it is unlikely to issue a special order, as it would result in a deficit budget for the district, which is not permitted by legislation.
For people who were displaced, Emergency Social Services took care of them for 72 hours. The hope is, he says, that insurance will have kicked in by now. “It sounds like most people had found accommodations with friends or other things were available for them. But if they haven’t, I encourage them to contact the district. To contact me. We can try and help get them in contact with the right people or a right organizations. As I’ve said before, Tumbler Ridge is one big family, and this town always comes together as a community, but also as a family, and, we’re not going to leave a resident without a bed or a couch or a table. Those people just have to come forward. If there is people out there that need things, they just need to reach out.”
The next step will be to remove the remains of the building, though no word on when that will happen.
Trent is the publisher of Tumbler RidgeLines.
