Kilmorey Destroyed By Fire
if the image looks a bit weird, it is horizontally inverted- I only had my webcam on me.
Just a piece of news, last night the Kilmorey Hotel caught fire and is completely destroyed. Apparently both Pincher and Waterton Fire stations responded. The Rice cabin next door was saved.
In an unrelated note, a number of decades ago a fire was set next to one of the walls of the Kilmorey. It was set during a winter storm
Update- I updated the story after talking to my parents. My grandparents remembered things quite vividly. It is in the comments
posted by chris goble @ 1/20/2009 08:20:00 AM
13 Comments
13 Comments:
Our cabin is just across the street. I guess my sister & mom-in-law watched the whole thing. Crazy!
now where am i gonna have a pint, burger, and poutine! Very sad news.
http://www.calgaryherald.com/news/Waterton+Lakes+Kilmorey+Lodge+destroyed+fire/1198596/story.html
Very sad a real landmark with great history.
You'll have to go to my place!
I just drove by and it really is quite a site to see.
As for my recollections of the fire story - here is the update from my dad and mom. It also fits better with my recollection of my Grandmother and Grandfather's first hand account.
There was a smaller hotel located where the Kilmorey now was. In 1933 during the depression in burnt down under suspicious circumstances. There was a trail in the snow leading to a house and some rather obvious signs of arson. The storm had stopped and the tracks were hard to conceal. An insurance inspector came and the word was he was going to report arson. On his way back to his home office (quite some distance away) his car had a suspicious crash. The local rumor mill had it his brakes had been tampered with.
The old Kilmorey was built up after this.
Stinky - I heard the Rice's place is OK. The tiny shack out in front of the Kilmorey (staff bunk) is still standing.
I also heard that it sounds like the fire started in the Kitchen - just gossip.
I guess we'll have to toughen up in the winter now that no hot cup of soup awaits us :(
Talked to a co-worker today who voiced his suspicion and wanted to place a bet that the fire started in the kitchen. Apparently some kitchen reno's done in the past were not done very well and had the potential of being a fire hazard. It will be interesting to see what comes out of the investigation.
At any rate, i guess we'll have to bring our own beer!!
Breaking News: they are supposedly opening the restaurant at the Lakes resort. Beer and burgers are saved!
Yes, Blair - I heard kitchen reno's were slated for April.
I didn't know it was in poor shape. the kitchen was in a pretty central location in the building, so it would have been really hard to contain the fire.
I don't believe the old Waterton Volunteer fire brigade is set up to run in the winter. I heard someone say it is still going in the summers though. Not positive on that.
I hear from the Lethbridge Herald that the cause of the fire has been put down to spontaneous combustion in the laundry room.
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