Squatters may have been responsible for a fire at the grandstand at Victoria Park in Owen Sound.
Owen Sound Fire Chief Phil Eagleson says while “an absolute cause” has not been determined, it’s believed people were squatting in the building underneath the grandstand and using it for shelter.
“It may have been caused electrically or from the people accidentally living in the structure, unauthorized of course,” says Eagleson. “We believe there was unlawful entry into the building, but we don’t believe it was arson.”
Firefighters were called to the blaze at the Owen Sound Agricultural Society grandstand around 12:30 a.m. early Tuesday morning. They arrived to find part of it fully up in flames.
The fire destroyed several rows of wooden seating on one end of the grandstand, and also ate into the brick and metal building structure under it. An area around the grandstand has been fenced off.
The damage estimate from Eagleson is between $500,000 and $1-million.
“Lots of the building and the grandstand will have to be repaired and replaced,” says Eagleson.
It’s tough news for the Owen Sound Agricultural Society. The organization had invested in renovations in recent years, after the city deemed the structure unsafe in 2022.