Mayor calls N.L. fish plant fire during hurricane-force winds ‘a perfect storm’

St. Mary’s Mayor Steve Ryan describes Tuesday night’s events as “a perfect storm.” The town's fish plant had burned down in the middle of a storm that brought hurricane-force winds. Those weather conditions are expected to continue through Wednesday.

Parts of the Avalon Peninsula will continue to see high winds through Wednesday

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St. Mary’s Mayor Steve Ryan describes Tuesday night’s events as a perfect storm.

He was the first on the scene of a fire that burned the St. Mary's Bay Fisheries plant to the ground. Hours later, the personal loss was still sinking in.

"My parents worked in the plant for 30-odd years," Ryan told CBC News on Wednesday morning. "That's how we were brought up, with the plants providing for us."

Crews were alerted to the fire around 8:45 p.m. NT on Tuesday evening.

Ryan said he arrived to flames bellowing out of the roof, and it was clear within about 10 minutes that the building would fall.

Don Boyles, chief of the Riverhead Volunteer Fire Department, said he knew nothing could be done.

"The fire was too large. We don't have the resources to put a fire out like that," Boyles said. "We could not do anything to save that building. My role as fire chief is to keep my guys safe."

About 20 residents evacuated their homes to stay at the town hall until the early hours of the morning, Ryan confirmed.

The fish plant was the largest employer in the region with more than 300 workers — both from the St. Mary’s area and abroad — during its peak season. Staff were processing redfish as recently as this week.

The mayor said it provided good, high-paying jobs and people from all over the world to the region.

"They're reaching out to us, they're down. They're all upset, and it's a big hit," Ryan said, adding many of the workers are like family.

"If you wanted to go to work, there was a job there for you.… It's all over for right now."

The owners of the plant haven't spoken publicly since the fire, but Ryan said they shared the same devastated feelings in the conversations he's had with them.

The RCMP is investigating to determine the cause of the fire.

Winds along the southern Avalon Peninsula gusted as high as 172 km/h on Tuesday. Environment Canada’s wind warning is still in effect for the Avalon Peninsula throughout Wednesday, with gusts up to 110 km/h expected along the coast.

WATCH | The CBC's Terry Roberts reports from St. Mary's following a devastating fire:

Shock, devastation as residents grapple with the massive loss of St. Mary’s fish plant that burnt to the ground

November 5|

Duration3:14

The seafood processing plant caught fire Tuesday night amid a heavy storm, and firefighting efforts were futile due to the overpowering winds. The CBC’s Terry Roberts reports from St. Mary’s.

A coastal flooding warning is also in effect for the southern Avalon.

Both Ryan and Boyles say they're thankful that no one was hurt. Boyles told CBC News he's thankful the fire didn't spread beyond the plant.

"I would expect that a lot of people in this area probably don't have home insurance. And, as such, it would be a complete loss if the fire broke out," he said.

Ryan said his concern is also shifting to employees ahead of the next processing season in the spring. He told CBC News he spoke with Premier Tony Wakeham on Wednesday morning, who pledged his support.

In a post on X, Wakeham called the fire a devastating loss.

Sherry Gambin-Walsh, the MHA for Placentia-St. Mary's, said the fire was still smoldering as of Tuesday afternoon.

"It's like a mound of black. It's very devastating to see this," she said.

Gambin-Walsh said she hopes the owners of the plant will rebuild. Her next priorities are supporting the plant's employees, she said, as their employment insurance will cut off in February or March.

"[We'll] try to see a way forward for the people here. And hopefully it's a way forward to bridge to the new plant being built and up and running again," she said.

Communication blackout

Ryan and St. Vincent’s Mayor Verna Hayward both said the situation was complicated even further when power went out, taking any available cell service along with it.

Hayward told CBC News that the loss of the fish plant is tragic for her town as well, but people weren’t able to call and check in on each other when power went out as it burned.

“We had no phone communication,” Hayward said. “When something happens like a fire, we don’t have time to go around knocking on doors.… We are at a standstill.”

The St. Vincent’s mayor said cell coverage can be spotty in that area on a good day. She’d like that to change.

Flooding on Route 90 through St. Vincent’s Beach has forced the road to close in both directions. The Department of Transportation and Infrastructure is advising people to avoid the area.

As of Wednesday morning, nearly 3,000 people were still without power. Most had their power restored by the afternoon.

"Hopefully we won't have any further outages, but that's a little unpredictable at the moment given the winds are still high," Glenda Power, communications director for Newfoundland Power, said in an interview with CBC Radio's The St. John's Morning Show.

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With files from Terry Roberts