Major fire at Calabogie Peaks Resort destroys snowmaking equipment

Massive fire at Calabogie Peaks Resort Fire destroys the pump house building at Calabogie Peaks, where the resort makes its snow. CTV's Dylan Dyson reports.

Fire crews rushed to the scene of a major blaze at Calabogie Peaks ski resort on Tuesday.

Photos from the scene showed a building at the resort engulfed in flames Tuesday morning. The building, known as the pump house, houses the resort's snowmaking operations.

Firefighters arrived at the scene around 7 a.m. Tuesday.

"It was pretty insane. I had never seen something so close but it was pretty well controlled," said Bri Outram, who was nearby. "It just felt surreal. I was drinking my coffee, watching this building burn."

Several guests said they were not evacuated from their condos, chalets, or hotel rooms and were unaware of the fire until the fire department arrived.

"The smoke didn't even come to our house, and we're just three over," Outram said. "We came out around eight and the whole building was completely burning. It was just like a skeleton."

The Greater Madawaska Fire Department says the fire, which had consumed the building, was under control by 10:30 a.m., with help from the McNab/Braeside Fire Department. No one was hurt.

Calabogie Peaks owner Paul Murphy said the pump house was empty when the fire started. The cause of the fire remains a mystery.

"All that equipment was at the west side of the pump house and the fire started on the east side of the pump house where there is no electrical equipment," he told CTV News.

The same building was destroyed by fire in 2013.

Murphy says there are about half a dozen runs that are still useable on the skill hill, but they are unable to make their own snow for the time being.

"We can't make any snow until we get a temporary pump house built, and we get the equipment that was inside either refurbished, rebuilt, or get replacement equipment, and perhaps some of it will be rental equipment, just to help us get going as quickly as we can," he said.

A note on the Calabogie Peaks website said the resort was closed "due to unforeseen circumstances." They later issued another update saying they hope to reopen on Wednesday.

Tuesday night a tweet from Calabogie Peaks confirmed it would reopen at 9 a.m. Wednesday.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Greater Madawaska Mayor Rob Weir thanked first responders in a statement Tuesday.

"Calabogie Peaks suffered a significant loss this morning and hopefully they will be operational in the near future," he said. "I would like to extend my gratitude to the McNab/Braeside Fire Department, OPP, Renfrew County Paramedics and our Public Works Department for aiding with this large fire incident. I would also like to commend the professionalism of all who assisted. I would like to extend a special thanks to Charbonneau's for their support of food and beverages. Finally, I would like to extend my appreciation to the fire department for its quick response to contain the fire."

Calabogie Peaks calls itself the tallest public ski resort in Ontario. The all-season resort is just over 100 kilometres west of downtown Ottawa, on the shores of Calabogie Lake.

--With files from CTV's Dylan Dyson.