‘It’s devastating’: Clean up underway after fire rips through RONA in Grand Bend

Crews are cleaning up a fire at RONA in Grand Bend. CTV London's Brent Lale checks in.

The smoke was so thick, neighbours describe not being able to see their hand in front of their face.

The RONA in Grand Bend, Ont. went up in flames on Friday.

“It was really dark, black smoke, almost like it was tar burning from the flat roof,” recalled Ron Crown, who lives next door.

“My wife called and said we had to evacuate the area because of the toxic smoke from the fire.”

Crown was one of several residents in a pair of condominiums who live just west of the hardware store.

Mayor Doug Cook lives in that same complex.

“That store has been there forever,” said Cook.

“They are a staple in Grand Bend, so without them, that’s going to be a big loss. People really relied on that store for everything in the hardware business. It’s devastating right now.”

At the peak of the fire just after 2 p.m. Friday, six different fire stations responded. Four from Lambton Shores, one from Exeter, and one from Dashwood.

“Upon arrival, firefighters found that the fire was located in the roof of the structure,” said Lambton Shores Fire Chief Sean Smith.

“The structure itself is an older structure and the make up of the building hindered firefighters.”

Saturday, the fire was completely out. Now the municipality is dealing with the runoff from fire operations.

“Obviously a hardware store, they have chemicals, pesticides, herbicides, paints, thinners, all that stuff,” said Smith.

“The amount of water we flowed into that building and the way it runs off, we’re more concerned now with the environmental impacts to the community.”

Following the fire, many locals were stopping by to look at the aftermath.

“I have a lot of memories in the building and the building’s gone now,” said Cam Haist, whose family owned it when it was a grocery store in the 1960s.

“It’s a sad day for the community, for sure. I swept the floor there a lot, sorted of pop bottles, cut meat, and packed groceries.”

The fire is a blow to both the community and the owners.

“The summer season was just ramping up, and this would have been one of the busiest times of the year for that business,” said Matthew Slotwinski, CEO of the Sarnia-Lambton Economic Partnership

“It’s going to have impacts on the residents who live there through the summer months. It’s going to have impacts on those individuals associated with the building community and the tourists coming through the area as well.”

Crown, Cook, and the neighbouring residents have been able to return to their homes after getting the approval from fire officials.

Now, it’s the community coming together to support those impacted.

“We feel sorry for the people that work there,” said Crown.

“That’s an unfortunate thing because we know them all. We know everybody that works over there.”

Moffatt and Powell, the owners of the store, made a post to social media about the blaze.

“As of this afternoon, our Grand Bend store is temporarily closed due to a fire. Emergency crews remain on site, and we ask the public to please avoid the area while first responders continue their work.

“We are grateful to share that all individuals inside the store are safe. Our thoughts are with everyone affected by this situation, including our team members, customers, and the surrounding community.

“At this time, the situation is still evolving, and we will share updates as more information becomes available.

“Our nearest store locations remain open in Strathroy and Exeter.”

More photos of the incident are online in a photo gallery.