Paradise fire department in the works: mayor

A fire that destroyed a house in Paradise has reopened the debate over the community's need for its own fire department.

Early Saturday morning, firefighters from Conception Bay South and St. John's were called to a house fire on Summit Drive. The two people who lived in the house managed to escape.

Noise from the blaze woke Rutta Zivtina, who lives across the street from the destroyed house.

"It started in the garage and that's where the main flames were, and by the time the first fire truck arrivedwith a water tanker they could not stop the flames. [The flames] already spread to the rest of the house. And I would say within less than an hour, the whole thing was down," Zivtina said.

The fire has raised concerns among people who live in the town becausethe absence of a fire department means they have to depend on teams from the surrounding districts.

"We are moving in that direction to have our own fire department here in the town of Paradise," Paradise Mayor Ralph Wiseman said.

The mayor said the town already had discussions with the neighbouring town of C.B.S. and, through a partnership with the ROVERS a volunteer search and rescue team they'll also have a new facility to house the new fire squad.

"They are in the process of putting up a building and, as I said, we'll put into that building a first response fire department," said Wiseman.

According to Wiseman, the squad is still 18 to 24 months from realization, however it would be fully equipped with its own pumper and "will be a full-paid fire department, 24/7."

Fire hydrants also an issue

Water to fight Saturday morning's fire had to be trucked insince there are no fire hydrants on the street where the blaze took place.

Mayor Wiseman said anyone who bought a house on the street would have known that from the onset.

"They would have known going into the area that that was an unserviced area. There are 100 acre lots up there," he said.

An investigation into how the fire started is still ongoing.