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UPDATED: Fire At The Hoito

Fort Frances, ON, Canada / CFOB 93.1 The Border
News
Dec 22, 2021 | 6:51 PM
UPDATED: Fire At The Hoito

Updated photo of the fire at the Hoito courtesy of Katie Nicholls



A fire at a historic Thunder Bay landmark.

Fire and police crews responded to the blaze at the Home of the Hoito around 7:00 p.m. Wednesday.

Dave Paxton is the Deputy Fire Chief in Thunder Bay and spoke to Acadia News about the blaze. He said when crews arrived, the fire was already in the walls and crews had to go on the defensive. Eventually fire fighters were pushed out of the building because of the heat and they needed to protect the neighbouring structures.

We were also told that everything from the second floor up to the roof is completely gone from the blaze, and that everything below will likely be heavily water damaged.

It’s not known if the the building is still salvageable as a structural engineer will need to inspect it first for safety.

The cause of the fire is still unknown and eight pumpers were on scene.

The Fire Marshal’s Office will be investigating the cause of the fire.

The landmark building originally closed back in the spring of 2020 and liquidated all assets to try and pay off financial obligations; that story can be read here and here when bankruptcy was finally filed at the end of May 2020.

Mayor Bill Mauro released the following statement Thursday afternoon:

Our hearts go out to the entire community following the devastating fire at the historical former Finnish Labour Temple and Hoito Restaurant building.

This beautiful, internationally recognized building was designated as a national historic site in 2015 and was originally built in 1909. It’s one of Thunder Bay’s most familiar and historic landmarks, and has been a community hub for well over 100 years.

On behalf of City Council, I want to thank Thunder Bay Fire Rescue and all first responders involved for their quick response and tireless work through the night to control the fire.

There have been so many memories created at the Hoito and Finlandia Club, and this tragedy will be felt by the entire community, as well as Nationally and Internationally, for many years to come.

Acadia Broadcasting’s Danny Foresta took this video at 4:45am, there were still several fire trucks at the scene making sure the building is completely extinguished.