'It was a shock': Fire claims historic hotel and café in Radville, Sask.

Radville, Sask. -

A long standing fixture in Radville, Sask. was destroyed by a fire in the early hours of Monday morning.

The Radville-Laurier Fire Department responded to a large fire at the Long Creek Saloon and the neighbouring Chinese restaurant just after 12:20 a.m.

“We were a fairly quick response, usually down here within a couple three minutes or whatever kind of thing. So it was a shock to hear or see when we came down,” Darryl Ferguson, deputy fire chief for the Radville-Laurier Fire Department said.

Radville Mayor Rene Bourassa woke up to a phone call from his daughter alerting him of the blaze.

“She said, ‘Dad, you better get down there at the hotel is on fire…and it’s big,’” he recalled.

The scene certainly fit that description. The 111 year-old building was situated in the centre of town and there was concern of the blaze spreading to nearby businesses.

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“I was hoping the wind stayed the right way so it didn’t wipe the whole block out, like the whole Main Street,” Mayor Bourassa said.

No injuries were reported as a result of the fire and the cause is yet to be determined.

The deputy fire chief said controlling the fire was a joint effort by local residents and surrounding communities.

“We basically had to control it from spreading someplace else. We also had Ceylon Fire Department come over and assist with us too. We had numerous farmers in with water trucks and a local trucking company had two water trucks,” Ferguson said.

As for what’s next, Mayor Bourassa is hopeful that in the near future, the town will continue moving forward and not leave a gap on Main Street for long.

“Let’s hope that somebody steps up and comes forward with a building, maybe another hotel or a restaurant,” he said. 

Radville is located about 133 kilometres south of Regina.