A suspicious fire ravaged part of a chicken coop in Wickham in the Center-du-Québec region on Wednesday night, killing nearly 13,000 chickens.
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It was the farm owners who contained the blaze while awaiting firefighters’ intervention.
The poultry farmer and a carpenter a few rows down the road can’t hide their concerns about response times and what the consequences could be after the abolition of their community’s fire department.
Joël Ménard, the breeder, considers his misfortune lucky. When nearly 13,000 chickens suffocated, the fire that broke out at the end of his third and final chicken coop was contained.
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He and his two sons probably had something to do with it, because equipped with fire extinguishers they managed to prevent the flames from spreading to the roof while waiting for firefighters.
According to witnesses, it would have taken a dozen minutes for a truck from Drummondville to arrive at the scene.
After the arrival of reinforcements from Saint-Nazaire, the four engineers waited five minutes before they could start irrigating.
Ghyslain Martel’s joinery is two kilometers from Joël Ménard’s chicken coops. This reaction time does not calm him down in any way.
Due to the combustible materials there and the lack of a rapid reaction force, he considers his business extremely risky.
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That’s not counting the increase in his insurance premiums, which will increase by 50% since his community has no more firefighters.
Last night’s fire is suspicious. In the part of the burned building there was no electricity and the door to the chicken coop was forced open.
Joël Ménard and Ghyslain Martel are among the thirty companies that have signed the formal notice demanding the reinstatement of the fire service.
Wednesday’s events only reinforce their beliefs.