NEWS RELEASES
TOWNSHIP OF SPRINGWATER
SIMCOE COUNTY MUSEUM
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At approximately 2 p.m. on Saturday, April 21, 2018, Springwater Fire and Emergency Services responded to reports of a working structure fire at the Simcoe County Museum on Highway 26 in Minesing.
Two stations were dispatched with a third quickly added, resulting in 37 Springwater firefighters and 13 fire apparatus responding to the call. Upon arrival, firefighters found smoke rising from the roof of the museum.
Prior to their arrival, museum staff had managed to quickly and safely evacuate everyone from the building. Firefighters used thermal imaging cameras to detect a fire located in the walls and ceiling of the building.
Crews were able to breach the roof and knock down the fire within approximately 40 minutes. Firefighters worked with museum staff to preserve the exhibits located in the Living and Working Gallery.
“Firefighters did a fantastic job, working quickly to gain control of the fire,” says Deputy Fire Chief Jeff French. “Their efforts ensured that there was minimal damage to the building and artifacts located within.”
The cause of the fire was deemed accidental as a result of ongoing construction activity. Damage is estimated at approximately $50,000.
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Simcoe County Museum remains closed due to small fire
MIDHURST – The Simcoe County Museum will remain closed early this week (April 23-24) for remediation following a small fire that occurred at the facility on Saturday afternoon.
Due to the quick efforts of staff and first responders, the fire was contained to a small section of the Living and Working gallery (Military section) located in the north east corner of the main building.
While this section of the building requires repairs, damage to artifacts was minimal with water damage to only one WWI Billboard, an original linen backed paper billboard that depicts a soldier standing at a grave, with the words “If ye break faith – we shall not sleep”. This billboard features prominently in the Military section of the gallery. A handful of other artifacts within the gallery also received minor smoke damage.
The Museum will remain closed to the public until later in the week. This includes cancellation of any conference/meeting room functions, school groups and general admission. The facility will be assessed again on Tuesday, April 24 and a status update will follow.
The County thanks everyone for their understanding and it is truly grateful that the Museum and the unique County history it contains have been preserved for future generations.
County of Simcoe is composed of sixteen member municipalities and provides crucial public services to County residents in addition to providing paramedic and social services to the separated cities of Barrie and Orillia. Visit our website at simcoe.ca.
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