Aftermath of a Monday morning fire in Merritt which destroyed two condos formerly owned by the Merritt Mountain Music Festival/via Big Power Films on Facebook

A massive blaze in Merritt early Monday morning is now under investigation.

The fire, which broke out around midnight, completely destroyed one of the condo buildings belonging to the former Merritt Mountain Music Festival, while also severely damaging another building on the site to the point where it will have to be dismantled.

The City’s Chief Administrative Officer, Cynthia White, says while no one was hurt, the fire itself did prompt them to send out a Voyent Alert due to the scope and potential impacts of the blaze, which could be seen across Merritt.

“There were actually a number of volatile things in those buildings,” noted White in an interview with Radio NL.  “We know that there have been propane tanks in them, barbeques, lawn mowers. Weird kind of things like that.”

She says the scope and intensity of the fire also prompted the BC Wildfire Service to become involved.

“They were also on site to make sure that if there was any kind of spread, they were able to manage it quickly so that it wouldn’t impact the community,” said White.

White says the owner of the buildings will ultimately be responsible for taking care of the aftermath, whomever that is.

“They’re not owned by the City. We understand that they’re shifting ownership at this point. So we’re not sure exactly is right now,” said White.

While the cause is under investigation, the long-abandoned condos are known to house some of the homeless population in Merritt.

Meanwhile, the RCMP in Merritt are also looking for any information or video connected to the fire.

“On June 17, 2024, shortly after 2am, Merritt Front Line Officers were called to a structure fire at an abandoned house off Midday Valley Road in Merritt,” said the RCMP in a release. “The fire quickly spread to another abandoned house next door, engulfing both buildings in flames. Due to the quick response of the Merritt Fire Department, both fires were held before they spread to a third abandoned building next door.”

“A witness observed a dark pick up truck pull up to the structures shortly before 2am” says S/Sgt. Josh Roda. “A few minutes later the structure was on fire and the pick up truck fled the area at a high rate of speed. We would like to identify and speak with the occupant of the truck to determine what may have occurred.”