Lafleche Loses Another Building: Flying Goose Inn

Another accidental fire in Lafleche last night, this one attributed initially to careless smoking (is there any other kind?). The Flying Goose Inn, the only bar and hotel in town, burned to the ground. Months ago, M.O.M, the bus station, also burned.

The hotel, a few weeks ago, in April.

Adding a little heartache to this story, it’s Lafleche’s 100th anniversary as a town, and Canada Day weekend is the celebration. Now there are fewer places for visitors to stay and visit in town, and there’s just another burned out lot.

Main St.

On January 10, 1984, I was present when the Lafleche Bumper To Bumper caught fire and burned down; The story I recently read in my Grandma’s journal entry for that day.

Deer-Tour Around Saskatchewan

Saturday’s road trip through the mist and fog yielded me the best wildlife photos I’ve ever had the privilege of shooting. Some photos from the earlier part of the trip I posted on Sunday morning.

-Glentworth, SK

Less than a few kms north of Glentworth, just turning toward the highway headed for Lafleche, we saw two herds on different sides of the road. They waited patiently as the humans in the car took many, many photos.

More of Lafleche Main St. Destroyed

The last of the old Lafleche Red & White grocery store, and the former butcher shop that adjoined it to the north, has burned down. Most recently it was M.O.M a coffee shop and store. The main part of the Red & White had been torn down years ago. It was one of the many local grocery stores which my family used during the 80s and early 90s. I remember the three aisle store well, and its toy section at the back corner where I’d ogle the Transformers for sale, but out of my spending power. Instead, I blew my money on candy and 35¢ baseball and hockey cards.

ADDED: Some CTV video.

Melville Hotel Fire 2010

You can see what it looked like in the Summer before it burned last year in February. The arsonist was given 3.5 years in jail.

Here’s another non-fiery view:

–
Hat tip to Joan

You can see an active list of hotel fires in Saskatchewan here.

Fire

A few days ago I noticed sirens outside of my place, which is not unusual in a city beside a street that leads to the General Hospital from the #1 highway. Then I was out walking the dog, and there was a TV camera pointing into my backyard area. “Odd,” I remarked to myself. I read on the news that there’d been an apartment fire the night before, and I figured out why I heard sirens, and April realized why there’d been a TV camera poking around.

A neighbour had burned his suite out by improperly disposing of smoking materials. The version of events I heard was that he’d emptied an ash tray into a wastebasket before it was out (he didn’t realize this at the time of course), and went to the corner convenience store. By the time he returned 10 minutes later, his place was in flames. Fortunately these buildings are mostly brick and cindercrete and concrete, so the damage was contained to one apartment of a 16 apartment building, and no one was hurt. $50,000 is the estimated damage, from smoking.

Dollarama Destroyed!

A fire Friday evening in Regina has left the south Albert St. Dollarama in ruins. I was several blocks south of Parliament Ave. and the smoke was thick in the air at 9:00 p.m., and still lingering an hour later when the fire was well under control and out.

April and I drove by the store by chance, and saw a fire truck and investigation vehicle on the scene, after doing some late night sugar shopping.